Island Life
by K3Y-TP
Summary: Weeks after they were liberated by the Future Foundation, Hajime and the remaining survivors are trying to move forward. Uncertain of what the future held, each of them lived each day while hoping for the best.
1. Stuck

"What's bothering you."

"Fuyuhiko?"

"It's only been three weeks. I'm just wondering what could've happened to send you falling into this rut you're in."

'I'm in a rut?' Hajime thought to himself. He took a second to search his head for an answer. His body shifted atop the warm sands of the beach as he adjusted his comfortable laying position. The sky was void of open space, beautiful white clouds were all he could see as he stared up. "I don't know, to be honest...I don't even think I'm in a rut, so to speak. I guess...I'm just hung up on everything we all went through."

"You too, eh. Well I can't tell you how to get through that. But I can tell you we're all in the same boat. Hell, Soda spends as much time as he can trying to see if he can wake the others, Sonia in the backseat while he tries. And Akane trains a thousand times more than we ever saw in the virtual world. And I...I can't get her out of my head."

Hajime sat up slowly as a calm silence surrounded the two of them. He glanced up at Fuyuhiko, whom smirked as he offered his hand. He returned the expression with a smile, taking his hand after. They now stood side by side, looking out at the tide rolling in.

"I think I'll be okay," Fuyuhiko started. "But you clearly need something to get your mind off of things."

"Sounds like you have something in mind." Hajime raised an eyebrow and turned to his friend. He wasn't desperate for an idea, but it had piqued his curiosity. Fuyuhiko smirked again, chuckling to himself as he thought about what he was about to say.

"Well I just figured...maybe, pursuing one of the girls might get your mind off of things."

"What!? T-Then the same thing could work for you!"

"Hey, don't fuck with me." he laughed at Hajimes reaction. "Even you should know there's only one girl for me."

"Ahh..."

"You're thinking about it too hard. You either go for it or not. And what is there to think about anyway? There are only two girls on this island. I'm not lookin' for a relationship, so that just leaves you and Kazuichi. Two girls, two guys."

"Kazuichi's liked Sonia for awhile now, so I guess that just leaves Akane."

"See, you're gettin' somewhere."

"W-Wait! That's not what I meant..."

"Well whatever, I won't pressure you."

"Heyyyyy! Wait for meeee!" Hajime and Fuyuhiko turned around after hearing Soda's voice behind them. Ahead, they could see Akane charging towards them with Sonia riding on her shoulders, pointing ahead as if leading a charge. On their trail was Soda, struggling to keep up. The two girls reached them far ahead of Soda, who had slowed from a run to a light jog. When he finally arrived, he looked extremely exhausted. "Owari...runs...like a demon."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure you're just out of shape." Fuyuhiko commented, earning a labored laugh from Kazuichi.

"Alright Sonia, pay up!" Akane said aloud as she did a set of stretches. Per her request, Sonia produced from her skirt pocket, a small slip of paper.

"I'm guessing that's your bargain for a ride over here?" Hajime asked.

"Indeed it is. It's a promise, for half of my dinner tonight. She insisted a great deal that that be my payment." Sonia laughed lightly as she explained, scratching her head.

"Because Hajime's cooking tonight!"Akane shouted with glee and excitement.

"I am?"

"It was my turn yesterday, so yeah, she's right." Kazuichi gave his usual toothy grin, giving a thumbs up on top of his confirmation. Hajime inwardly scoffed at the thought, not particularly fond of having cooking duty. But he took pride in how much someone like Akane who loved eating, liked his cooking.

"She likes your cooking. You've practically won her over already." Fuyuhiko leaned over and whispered into Hajime's ear. He flinched at the returning idea, bringing Kuzuryu more joy at his expense.

"Ah! I almost forgot! I finished the last one today!" Kazuichi said aloud, calling for attention. Sonia and Akane perked up at the announcement as well, explaining the sudden appearance of the three.

"You fixed the solar panels?" Hajime asked.

"The Jabberwock Hotel now has power! Now it'll be just like in the simulation! Full kitchens in the main and side buildings, and working a/c and light AND water in all of the cottages! The pool pump even works now! I never got a chance to swim in that pool, so I think I might today."

"I can cook on a stove? That's great, Kazuichi. For all your hard work, I'll yet you decide the dish tonight."

"Make the ramen you made last week! With the kitchen in working order it should be easy right?!"

"Ramen it is then." Hajime smiled, agreeing to Soda's request. At that point the five of them started to walk back to the hotel together, where they would celebrate Kazuichis recent achievement. During the dinner Hajime was sat next to Akane, and was given suggestive looks by Fuyuhiko while he sat across the table. The night the group spent together was a happy one, and it was something none of them took for granted.

* * *

"It still surprises me how similar this island is to the virtual one."

Hajime spoke to himself as he dressed himself in his sleeping attire. Everyone had adjourned for the night after dinner, and he had decided to return to his cottage and head to bed early. Before falling asleep however, he could not help but recall his conversation with Fuyuhiko from earlier that day. He was indeed in dire need of an outlet to take his mind off past tragidies, but romance seemed too far of a stretch. But the idea wasn't impossible at all. It was reasonable even.

But only the future would tell, right?


	2. Movies

"Did Kazuichi say anything else to you?" Hajime asked Fuyuhiko before taking a seat next to him. He only shrugged his shoulders, turning his eyes back to the bright red apple he was tossing up as they wait.

"He didn't tell me shit. Just said, 'Wait for me at the hotel lobby!' and ran off somewhere. I'm guessing he's telling the girls the same right now. He clearly wants to show something off, though."

"Could it have something to do with our friends? He does spent almost all of his free time there." his interest had risen at the thought of news regarding their comatose friends. He let the idea float around in his head for a bit before dismissing it due to low probability.

"I'd stop making fun of him forever if that was true." Fuyuhiko had seemingly dismissed the idea as well, but it was good to see that he has also considered it. "I'm just glad we have him around to keep things running."

"Surprise!"

"AHH!"

Fuyuhiko let out a quick and sharp scream as Kazuichi jumped out from behind them. Hajime was surprised as well, he just didn't show it as vocally as his friend did. Soda laughed at the yakuza's reaction , making his face turn red in embarrassment. In the mechanics arms, he held a trio of items stacked on top of one another. From bottom to top he held a projector, a laptop, and what you could only assume was a dvd inside of a clear square case.

"Good morning, everyone!" Sonia mused as she and Akane walked down the stairs from the restaurant above.

"All right, everyone's here! Hey Hajime, think you can help me set up this stuff back here?"

"We're watching a movie?" Hinata asked as he stood up and followed Soda to the back wall behind them. Together they quickly setup the electronics on a low coffee table against the wall. The whole time, Kazuichi was grinning, eager to unveil his surprise.

"Well...you know how I've been digging through things left behind by the Future Foundation, right? So, in one of the computers... I found the surveillance records of all of our time on the virtual island!"

"That's sick, Kazuichi." Hajime was taken aback by this as well, Fuyuhiko's statement bringing a mutual opinion to light.

"No no no, I edited it!" Kazuichi defended himself, waving his hands in front of him as he spoke frantically.

"Edited?" Hajime asked.

"Right! No murders, no crime scenes, class trials, or executions."

"What about footage from inside of cottages?" Sonia spoke with a annoyed tone as she stepped forward. Her right hand was raised, prepared to smack him if his answer wasn't to her liking.

"Of course not! I would n-never..."

"So what is on there?" Hajime interrupted, halting Sonia's brief threat.

"I thought it'd be nice to have memories of the time we all spent together. Seeing as most of the people in this footage aren't here...I thought it'd be nice if-"

"Well what are you waiting for!? Let's watch it already!" Akane shouted from her seat, arms raised in the air. While the others were still somewhat hesitant, they had all decided to give it a chance. Everyone took their seats, and waited for Kazuichi to dim the lights and get things going.

* * *

"I haven't heard Gundham speak in so long, I forgot how odd he sounded." Sonia giggled as they all saw Hajime conversing with Gundham on screen. The footage was doing as Kazuichi had intended, raising everyone's morale by reminding them of the time they spent with their friends.

Chiaki, Nekomaru, Mikan, Hiyoko, Gundham, seeing past footage of all of their friends had everyone in a good mood, but it eventually ceased for Hajime. As the footage continued, he noticed that some people had stopped appearing on screen, reminding him of all of the needless killing that happened. Yes, it was 'fake' to a certain degree, but in a way it was still real. Those who died in the virtual world were still unconscious inside of their pods, no sign of if they'd ever be 'alive' again.

However, Hajime still took comfort in seeing his friends enjoy themselves around him.

"Hey! I said stop it!" Hajime was yanked out of his thoughts by the shouting occurring behind him. Glancing towards his right he can see Sonia and Fuyuhiko, smiling as they continued watching the projection. Looking behind them, he sees Kazuichi, struggling to hold back Akane as she reached for the laptop that was playing the video, his hysterical chuckling heard while he did.

 _"Wow, Hajime..."_ his head jerked back immediately at the sound of that voice. Looking back at the projection, he could see Akane and himself. Her hand was being grasped firmly by his, a blush taking over her face. _"You, you're warm...This is the first time I've ever felt someone this warm..."_

"Aw come on!" Kazuichi groaned as Akane slipped past him and disconnected the laptop from the projector before quickly knocking it off of the table. The video on the wall was halted and replaced by static.

"I'll kill you! That was none of your business, you idiot!" Akane now had Kazuichi by the collar, and was shaking him violently back and forth, his mood unwavering as his laughing continued.

"Hajime, I think you're the only one who can help him at this point." Sonia spoke up from her seat.

With nervousness piled atop embarrassment, Hinata stood up and walked towards Akane. As she pulled back to punch Kazuichi, Hajime had entered the line of fire. The point of her bent elbow struck him in the head, sending him falling back as fast as he was hit.

"Well this went south fast." Fuyuhiko said as he watched Hajime hit the floor. "This was a good idea, Soda. It went pretty well."

"Oh dear...you knocked him out." Sonia and the others were now standing around Hajime's limp form.

"Lucky me, eh?" eyes bored into Kazuichi after hearing that tasteless joke.

"Akane! Knock him out!" Sonia commanded, pointing at Soda.

"I'll beat him to death!" Akane shouted at the top of her lungs, chasing the now fleeing mechanic out of the building. Sonia rushed out after the two of them while shouting various obscenities. Fuyuhiko was the only one to stay behind, laughing lightly as he gently prodded Hajime's body with his foot.


	3. Repeat

*Bang! Bang!*

"Go Away! People are sleeping in here!" Soda yelled as Akane's fists came down on the door twice. Turning, he brings his attention back to the task at hand. With a heavy hand, he dabbed at a cut near Hajime's hairline with a damp blood stained cloth. He was still knocked out, and had started bleeding from his wound a short while ago. Soda had volunteered to treat him out of guilt, and Akane was clearly opposed to the notion.

*Tap Tap Tap Tap*

"Kazuichi? Would you open the door, please?" Sonia's light voice came through the door after a series of light knocks on the door. Soda's head turned as soon as he heard her voice.

"Ms Sonia?" he cooed. Attention now focused elsewhere, Kazuichi's hand squeezed the damp rag, a mixture of blood and lukewarm water raining down onto Hajime's face. "What is it?"

"How is Hinata doing?"

"Oh, Hinata. He's doing...OKAY!? HE'S OKAY!" Kazuichi tried to drown out the sound of Hinata's sudden hoarse coughs, yelling over him while looking down at the mess he's made. In a hurry he stands and bolts for the bathroom to ring out and rinse the cloth, tripping over his own feet and immediately crashing down.

"What was that? What's going on in there?!" outside, the girls had both heard the racket Kazuichi was making, along with Hajime's coughing. "That's it! Akane, break down the door!"

Owari took a few steps back and started stretching her legs. After brief preparations the gymnast charged the door. Aiming near the hinges, she lands a kick with full force sending the wooden door flying off of its frame. As the the both of them stood in the newly opened doorway, they were both at a loss for words at what they saw inside.

Inside, Hajime was still coughing as he lay in his bed, his face coated in a thin layer of wet blood. While his coughing fit carried on, Kazuichi lay sprawled out on the floor, the blood soaked rag now unfolded and draped over his face.

"Dear god...what did you do?"

"I did nothing!" Kazuichi screamed as he sat up, the cloth sliding down his face and falling into his lap as he did so.

"You fool! Here, give me that!" Sonia walked over to Soda, slapping the back of his head before kneeling down and taking the cloth from him. Taking the now red piece of fabric into the bathroom, she exchanges it for a clean fresh replacement. Stepping out of the washroom, she tosses Akane the clean towel.

"And I though Tsumiki was the clumsy one." Akane's eyes scan over Hajime's blood stained face before glaring daggers at Kazuichi. Taking her seat next to her sleeping friend, she leans over him and uses the towel to wipe off his face. After about the fourth or fifth time the fabric glides over his skin, his eyes are open. "Ah...Sorry, if I woke you up."

His expression was blank as his eyes were half opened. He looked angry, or at the very least, irritated. The best possible way to describe the look on his face was as a look of boredom. Akane's eyes were locked to his as her mouth hung open slightly. She couldn't find anything to say at the moment. She couldn't even tell if he would want her to say anything.

"..." he rolled over on his side, and now had vision of the rest of his room. Kazuichi was still sitting on the floor in the middle of the room. When their gazes met, the mechanic shuddered before letting out a nervous chuckle. Hajime's red eyes felt like they could burn a hole through the back of his head if he stared at him long enough.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry about this morning." Akane voiced her concerns again. Hinata's gazed jumped from Soda back to Owari as he stayed on his side.

"I'm fine." he spoke in a soft flat voice. She warned up hearing his response. "Sonia? Can you give me some water. Please."

"O-Of course." Sonia complied to his request, going back into the bathroom and filling one of the two countertop glasses with water from the tap. She approached him slowly so as not to spill any water. He sat up slowly when she reached his bedside, and she scoffed at his appearance. "Your shirt collar, it has blood all over it! Take it off, and I'll clean it for you."

He showed no hesitation in following her request, removing his tie before his shirt, trading the latter for the glass of water. Sonia quickly left the cottage with his clothing, a pep in her step as she did.

"Could you be...any worse as a nurse?" he finally smiled, laughing lightly at Kazuichi before downing the water and placing the glass on the floor next to his bed.

"Hey I though I did pretty good," Soda laughed back, pulling at his collar.

"It got in my nose, Kazuichi. I can still smell it. So what happened? I'm startled that Owari's hands aren't wringing your neck right now."

"Fuyuhiko stopped me." Akane giggled, remembering how events had played out that morning. "He said it'd be a bad idea, since we don't have an actual nurse around."

"Lucky me, huh?" Kazuichi laughed again, finally standing up from the floor. He scratched at his neck nervously as he stood there, until he said "I'm gonna go now. I'll be at the control room, probably for the rest of the day" and ran out of the room.

Silence had never sounded so loud to either of them before. Akane was still sitting at the edge of his bed, staring at the ceiling while she twiddled her thumbs. Hajime repositioned himself so he was laying on his side again, and with his right hand, pulled his covers over his body and up to the base of his neck. He looked at her from his point of view, and could see clearly that she wanted to speak. With what he knew about her, he figured that she might feel weak by saying anything at all, but it clearly wasn't that complicated. She felt guilty, and that was it.

"I'm not mad, not at all." he thought it'd be better if he spoke first. She turned so they were face to face, a surprised look on hers.

"Not even a little?"

"Not even a little."

"I just got so worked up...and embarrassed."

"Embarrassed?"

"That moment...they all saw it...I wanted that moment for myself, and only myself. The moment when you reminded that being strong meant to overcome my own weaknesses."

He was genuinely surprised. Now, he could see why she why she had been so angry. He did not want to leave this moment in the air, but he could feel himself falling back asleep. So he decided to act. His left hand slowly slid out from his blanket, brushing against her arm before tenderly grasping her left hand. She had turned away, quickly looking back at him when he grabbed her. His eyes were closed. He was asleep.

This moment would be for them, and them alone.


	4. Hoping for the Best

"Hey, are you gonna answer the fuckin' door or not!"

Kuzuryu almost slammed his knuckles against the beaten wood door for the third time that morning. He'd been knocking for at least a half hour on this third attempt,where as his first two tries had ended in him leaving after bout five minutes of waiting before he gave up and left. He wouldn't be shut out so easy.

"I'll get Owari to kick down this damn door again!" he shouted once again before kicking the door with his right foot. "Hinata!"

*Click*

The door was unlocked from the other side, cracking open slightly. Through the opening only darkness was shown, aside from one other thing. Hinata's bright red eye peered out through the crack, staring down the agitated visitor. Nothing was said by either, and nothing was heard by either.

"You're not gonna say anything?" he took hold of the situation himself, cocking his head to the side as he spoke words soaked in anger and annoyance. No response was presented once again. It could even be thought that Hinata wasn't moving at all, if his eye hasn't closed halfway.

"Could I talk to you later." Hajime spoke from behind his door , nearly causing Fuyuhiko to jump just from hearing his voice. But the answer he had given did not seem to remedy the situation at all. Fuyuhiko's fists curled up at his sides, his knuckles popping from the motion.

"You're lucky we're friends. Anyone else, well they'd be fuckin' dead by now." Fuyuhiko took a deep, calming breath. His body loosened up, palms opening as they slid into his pockets. He turned and walked away, but not before saying that he'd hold him to his word.

Watching him leave his view, Hajime let out a heavy breath as he pushed his door shut, locking it as he now leaned besides the frame. He stared at the ground before moving so that his back was pressed to the wall. He slid down to the floor, now sitting as he clutched his head in his hands. Inside his head he wrestled with his thoughts.

His thoughts of the happiness he wanted in his new life.

* * *

"Yeah he's not coming." Fuyuhiko said as he took his seat among the others in the restaurant. "We'll just have to discuss this without him."

"And what's that again?" Akane said "Sorry, I already forgot."

"What we'll do about the others, should something happen..." Sonia answered solemnly. She hid her face, looking down at her lap while she shuffled in her chair.

"She means if someone wakes up and attacks someone else." Kazuichi said bluntly. "Remember how Mikan acted in the simulation when she got her memories back? She killed two people!"

"We can't say with one hundred percent certainty that something like that would happen again. Besides, we were the same as them. It's thanks to Hinata that we even remember what happened during that trip. If the bastard had bothered to show up, maybe he'd have some sort of idea."

"Yeah...although, we might be worrying about this too soon. I'm in the control room every day. Not a single one of them has shown even the slightest change."

"I guess all we really can do is believe in our friends and hope for the best..."

Their hope was dim, but it was there. Each of them felt saddened by the reality of their friends conditions, but there was nothing that could be done at the moment. All they could do was continue living out their daily lives. Continue to live, and hope that eventually all of their friends would join them.

* * *

'Is it a waste of time?" he thought to himself. He had not moved from his spot on the floor yet, too engaged in his thinking to move. Over and over he went through different possibilities, different approaches, different possible outcomes. There of course, was no clear answer to his question.

Part of him was optimistic. That happiness could be part of his reality, something he could experience each and every day. Yet, there was a part of him that thought the exact opposite. It was idiotic. It was never going to be. It was a waste of time.

He was, to put simply, confused. Not once could he recall feeling this way. This hopeful, excited, yet scared feeling. As he sat there, the sound of nearby voices reached his ears through his cottage walls. He could hear them, his friends. He cracked a smile, realizing how needless this anxiety was. Standing up, he walked into his bathroom, grabbing the pair of dry swimming trunks that hung over the shower head. Changing, he leaves his cottage with a smile on his face, running into Soda and Kuzuryu outside.

"You're going swimming?" was all Kazuichi said when he saw him, sharing the same surprised look as Fuyuhiko. "Fuyuhiko said you were sulking in your cottage."

"Well, it's nice outside...so I thought I'd come out and-"

"Well thanks for tellin' us, jerk! I'm going too!" Soda laughed as he ran away towards his cottage, slamming his door behind him. Fuyuhiko didn't move, however, he did have a question.

"The beach, or the swimming pool?"

"The beach?"

"Hmm...I guess that's alright. I'll meet ya there." he walked past him slowly, saying that he could use some relaxation. He disappeared inside his cottage, just as Soda reappeared in swimming trunks, a white towel over his shoulder. The two started conversing, enjoying eachother's company as they walked to the beach.

Hajime realized he had been worried for nothing. He could push aside what was worrying him, and simply enjoy being alive. This, coincidentally enough, reminded him of a conversation he had with Fuyuhiko before. And it turns out he was right. All he needed was a distraction.


	5. Doubts

"Don't look." Fuyuhiko leaned over, whispering into Hajime's ear as they sat at one of the many tables in the restaurant. Their three other friends were sitting near eachother a few feet away, making small talk. He turned his head, raising a brow to show how much he had understood that statement.

"Don't look at what?" he whispered back after swallowing a mouth full of food. They played out their private conversation as smooth as possible, the topic of interest still in the air. Fuyuhiko took a sip of water, before bringing another bite to his mouth, speaking as he did so.

"Owari's starin' at you." a wave of heat slapped him in the face. Fuyuhiko caught the change in his composure, coughing to suppress his laughter. From his seat, Hajime could see Akane from the edge of his peripheral vision. Pure curiosity is what urged him to turn his head. "I said don't look, you moron."

He was prodded in his side with an elbow, his head staying in its current position, watching his hand needlessly toss food around on his plate. He took a bite, chewing slowly and without interest.

"How can you tell?" he probes for information, his whispers dancing on the thin line of secrecy. Fuyuhiko leans back, stretching against his chair so that his head was closer to Hajime's ear.

"She's not eating. At all." what was that supposed to mean? He showed his confusion by making a face, only receiving a few muffled curse words as a response. "Her plate is still full, you fucking genius. She's too preoccupied with looking at your damn face."

Hajime grunted as Fuyuhiko quickly stomped on his foot. He turned his head as he retaliated by copying his action. After that his body had succumbed to his overwhelming curiosity, and he shifted his vision towards her direction.

Their eyes met instantly. And in that instant, all of his nervous hopes had jumped out of hiding. At the moment, all that could be felt by him was warmth. His chest flared up as the fires within rekindled themselves. Slowly, he could feel his anxieties begin to fill his head again.

"You know there is such a thing as waiting too long." Hajime's head turned back towards Fuyuhiko when his words reached him. After exchanging a few remarks, he couldn't help but look back at Akane.

At her seat, having been discovered, she tried putting on a façade by attacking the food on her plate. The blush on her face had stayed behind as she ate, her eyes struggling to keep from looking back at him.

He took this chance to get up and leave the room. Saying nothing he took his leave, walking out of the hotel grounds. He needed to be alone, to relax. He walked towards the beach.

* * *

High tide was starting to roll in. The sky was filled with bright clusters of stars, lighting the night sky. Hajime sat down in the soft, comfortable sand, his back against a palm tree as he stared out at the waves.

He had been at the beach since he left the restaurant. Sitting there , he drifted in and out of a light sleep, trying to ignore the thoughts that had returned to him. He would just have to try harder, so that matters like this wouldn't phase him.

"I don't know what to do anymore." he sighed heavily, closing his eyes. The cold night air greatly contrasts the heat coming from his body. It brought a rather odd sense of comfort, as he started to shiver. He settled further into the sand below, using the sound of the waves to help him relax. He had decided that it would be best to forget about all of this until a later date.

* * *

"Did I do something wrong?"

"Besides knocking him out, no I don't think you have."

"He's been avoiding me for two weeks now. I must've done something."

"Akane, you did nothing wrong. Why don't you just try and relax, and think about this logically."

"That's what I've been doin'. And all that's done is confuse me."

"Well...what is it that's confusing you?"

"I think...I..."

"It's alright, you don't have to say it. I understand."

"I don't know what to do anymore."

Akane slouched over, holding her head up in her hands. Next to her, Sonia tried to comfort her as best as she could, patting her back with her left palm. The two girls had been talking for some time, not reaching any sort of conclusion.

"I think you just have to talk to him." Sonia threw out her advice bluntly. Sitting on that advice Akane wondered if that was all she could do. Of course, a solution for this type of dilemma wasn't easy to find. And, any solutions that could be found, were not always as simple as they may have sounded.

"I don't think I can do that..." she denied the thought almost immediately. This song and dance was beginning to become tiresome. This endless cycle of hope followed by doubt. "If he rejects me..."

"Well, in the end, this is up to you and him." Sonia stood up, patting Akane on the top of her head. "Try not to think about it so much. You're just stressing yourself out. I'll see you tomorrow. Good night, Akane."

"Yeah, see ya later..." Akane got up, locking her door as her friend departed for the night. Alone again, she throws her body onto her bed, burying her face into her pillow and groaning as loud as possible.

"I've never felt so weak before..."


	6. Maintenance

"Are you sure it's safe to be doing that?" Sonia asked Kazuichi. The Ultimate Mechanics legs were crossed as he sat on the floor, a few different tools resting in his lap. He was sitting next to one of the pods that contained their comatose friends, the side of it opened to examine the parts on the inside.

"I know for sure that it is not. The life support systems went offline for a few of the pods. That's what keeps em' all hydrated and stuff like that. Basically, it's what keeps them alive. If I can't fix the ones that are going haywire, well...they're gonna die."

"How long do you have?" Sonia asked with a hitch in her voice. Kazuichi had stopped his working, bringing one of his hands to his chin as he thought the question over.

"Maybe a few hours. Now they'll be okay without it for awhile. But I'd still like to fix everything as soon as possible. Could you go find Hinata? I think I'm gonna need an extra pair of hands if I'm gonna get this done quickly."

Sonia complied immediately, rushing out of the room. Now alone, Kazuichi tried to get back into focus. Straightening his posture, he leaned forward to take a peek at the top of the pod in front of him. Inside he could see the resting body of Koizumi Mahiru. He shuddered at the thought that his inability to fix something would be the death of someone. All he could do was believe in his talents.

As he started his work, his eyes darted back between some schematics and a box of spare parts he had, an all new problem had just made itself known to him. The spare parts he had at his side were just enough for two of the pods, at best. There were six in need of maintenance. Kazuichi felt like an idiot for saying that only a few of them were going under when in actuality, it was more than half.

He stood up quickly with the schematic in hand, and ran for the nearby storage room. It was at about that time that the situation had gone from bad to worse. He grabbed one of the handles attached to the double doors of the storage room. It was locked.

"It's locked!?" he pulled at both handles now, which was a futile effort. Frantically, he pats his body down, checking for the key that he usually kept inside his pocket. He went over his body once. It was not there. He checked again. It still wasn't there. "Where is it!?"

He brought his fist down on the door out of frustration, running back over to where he was currently sitting. He knelt down, inspecting the box of extra parts. As he tried coming up with a solution, he could hear his friends approaching, the door to the building slamming open.

"What's going on!?" he heard Hajime yell from across the large room. As he and Sonia drew closer, their sprints slowly came to a halt. Sonia was clearly exhausted as she leaned on Hajime's arm, panting heavily.

"I need some help here," Soda stood up, snatching his beanie off of his head before ruffling his own hair. He explained the situation at hand and the problems he had on the side, receiving shocked looks from the both of them. "You still got a bit of Kamukura in ya', right?"

"We're one in the same, so yeah, I guess so? Why?" Hajime cringed at the mention of Kamakura Izuru, his former personality.

"As I said, I can't find my storage room key. I've gotta get in there to get some extra things I need to fix these things. I figured you can find some sort of way to get the door op-"

"Is that your key right there?" Hajime pointed to the ground near one of the pods. Soda almost screamed with glee when he saw the key on the floor. He ran over and picked it up, running back to the storage room while yelling about how lucky it was that Hinata spotted the key on the floor.

Kazuichi ran out of the storage room as fast as he ran in. He returned with a large box, pushing it so it slid across the floor. The sound of clanging metal sent a shiver down everyone's backs as the box stopped at Hajime's feet.

"Alright! Let's assume that everything's gonna be okay, and get to work!"

* * *

"Yeah that can't be good." it was one thing after another today. With help from Hinata, Soda was able to fix all of the pods, as well as devise plans in case something of a similar matter should happen later on. However, another problem had made itself present in the end. "Those two aren't looking so good..."

"Who?" Hajime asked Kazuichi.

"My left and right eyes, just look, I've got bags!" Hajime rolled his eyes, but couldn't help but chuckle. Kazuichi did look exhausted, and this little incident couldn't have been good for him. It was a lot of pressure. "I'm wayyyy too young to have bags under my eyes. I'll never get a girlfriend looking like this!"

"I don't think you have to worry about that." Sonia shot Hajime a look as she giggled at what she had said. Soda took the insult with a grain of salt, laughing it off himself. But it still hurt to hear something like that come from her of all people.

"So everyone's okay?" Hajime wanted to be certain.

"Some of them are startin' to smell a little funny but yeah, they're all okay. Oh, but before I forget, I gotta tell you something." his demeanor had changed in an instant. He held his chin with his hand, thinking on how to best explain the matter. He sighed, as if struggling to push the words out of his mouth. "While we were working on things down there...I swear..."

He looked very uneasy. Hajime and Sonia waited patiently for him to speak.

"I'm sure...I saw Komaeda's eyes open."


	7. Night Shift

"You know we can work out a schedule for this."

"It's fine. Go back to the hotel and get some sleep."

Hinata almost had to yell just to get Soda to leave. The whole group had discussed the Komaeda event for a large majority of the day. While they were all awaiting their friends return, the last person they'd want to wake up first was him. Everyone thought that someone should stay overnight and watch the pods while the others slept. Hinata volunteered to stay every night. The others were slightly against the idea, because it seemed somewhat unfair.

"If something happens, you'll be alright then?" Kazuichi's concern was nice and all, but it was becoming a bit irritating.

"Nothing's going to happen." Hajime smiled, trying to pound some sense of ease into the mechanics head.

"Well if he does wake up, be careful. Things usually tend to go his way. I guess I'll see ya tomorrow." Soda finally left for the night, reluctantly.

Hajime let out a heavy breath as soon as his friend left earshot. The first thing that came to mind was time. He'd be up for at least a minimum of eight hours, guarding these sleeping bodies from nothing. But it was a necessary precaution to take, if there was a chance HE would wake up. Komaeda Nagito was not the most pleasant person to be around. His actions against everyone else in the simulation did not help his case, of course.

Hajime did not want him out of sight.

* * *

About four hours had passed since his watch began. Nothing happened. Nothing happened at all. He hovered over Komaeda's pod for quite awhile, eyes fixated only on his face. If he really did wake up, he clearly slipped back into his coma. Either that, or he was feigning sleep until he could leave his pod and slip away.

Hinata realized he had been overthinking this. He eased up, moving away from the pod. Finding himself pacing back and forth around the room, and eventually looking at the others.

It was odd, almost uncomfortable, too see all of them as they were. They were all dead. He had seen their corpses, seen their spilt blood. But that wasn't real. They were all here, alive and well. Hajime had decided it was best not to dwell on it too much.

He started wandering around the room again, to pass the time. As he was doing earlier in the night, he walked from person to person. He would stop and stare, and then move on. Stop, stare, move on. Every night? He regretted that call, slightly.

"I figured you'd get bored." he stopped his pacing and spun around to see Fuyuhiko walking towards him. "I could tell just from looking at you."

"What are you doing here." he was blunt and to the point.

"I used to come here every night." he said, walking towards, and then past Hajime. He stopped at one of the pods. Placing his flat palms on its surface, he leaned against the machinery, looking down at his friends face. "I stopped recently. But I figured if that psychopath Komaeda almost got up..."

"She's been still the whole night. They all have." Fuyuhiko wasn't surprised to hear that.

"Wake up!" he yelled at the pod jokingly, chuckling to himself. Sighing, he moved his hands to his pockets. He stared for a few more seconds before looking up at Hajime.

"Is that all you came here for?" he could see through the charade. He may have wanted to visit her, but he was there to see Hinata as well. It was confirmed, Fuyuhiko going silent, save for his now tapping foot.

"I guess it wasn't."

"Then what?"

"Just checking on you." he sounded stern, like a father talking to his son. "You've been quiet lately."

"I've had something on my mind for quite awhile." he was honest in his explanation.

Fuyuhiko perked up, guessing what it was he was talking about. Hajime saw this, and smiled lightly.

"You know, I just brought that up as a joke, right?"

"A joke..." Hajime fell silent at that statement. He looked forward, at the ground, cupping his chin with his left hand. Taking what he just said into account, he was surprised he was taking it so seriously. Days and nights spent dwelling on a matter that was introduced as a joke.

"So you're alright then?" Fuyuhiko changed the subject. He had already teased him about this enough in the past.

"Yeah...I'm alright." he answered.

"Well I'll leave you to this then." Fuyuhiko patted the pod in front of him before taking his leave.

* * *

"Yeah, I'm sorry I couldn't get much out of him." Fuyuhiko spoke softly as he closed the metal door behind him. The night air was crisp and cold, made ever more present by the constant winds. Outside he met with Akane, who had been eavesdropping on the both of them. "Could you hear him?"

"Yeah I heard him." the two started walking back, the young woman grumbling her words.

"You know you could've asked me awhile ago. Probably would've went easier than this." he said, fidgeting with the strap of his eyepatch. "Doesn't help if both of you are hardheaded."

"Oh, shut up." she clicked her tongue, punching him in the arm. He laughed.

* * *

"Do I deserve to be happy?" he said to himself for what felt like the hundredth time. Most people would just say yes to the query, but he felt like he needed to ask himself. Yes, he should know, yet he didn't.

In his hand he moved around a pin. He remembered finding it in his clothes when they first left the simulation. He knew who it belonged to, but he could never give it to them. He thought about what that person might tell him.

He though about the life he wanted. The life he wanted with Akane.

"I think I'll tell her, soon..."

He thought he didn't deserve happiness.

But he wanted it.


	8. Conflict

'I like you.'

'I really like you.'

'I really, really like you.'

'I love you?'

"Why does this have to be so hard?" Hinata smacked himself as he walked through his cottage door. It was morning, and he was just getting back from his night shift at the control room. This was his seventh shift since the first day, and he'd used each night to think about how he would confess.

Pure nervousness. His body shook just out of pure nervousness. Even if he had wanted to, he couldn't fall asleep now. Especially after deciding that today was the day he'd go for it. Rejection was anticipated, and to be honest, feared.

"Alright...I'm going to... I'm really doing this." he said to himself as he took note of his deteriorating condition. From the bathroom mirror he could see that he was sweating profusely, and that his hands wouldn't stop shaking. His eyes shot away from his reflection as he cursed out loud. Clearly he was being a bit too hasty in making this decision, but he had made up his mind.

He still planned on doing it today, but he thought it would be best if he at least got some sleep. He moved over to his bed, flopping onto it in a single motion. He stared at the ceiling, slowing his breathing, trying as hard as he could to relax. He didn't sleep as he had intended, continuing to stare upwards as he lay on his back.

Trying to relax only put him more on edge. He knew he had something to be anxious about, and staring at nothing would do nothing to make that feeling go away. And as intelligent as he was at this point in time, he couldn't think of anything that would stop his heart from racing.

He decided to close his eyes. A yawn escaped his mouth, once, and then once again. He rolled out of bed quickly, not wanting to succumb to sleep after all. He yawned again when he stood up, stretching his arms over his head. He threw off his clothes without a second thought, deciding spontaneously to take a shower.

As the ice cold water spewed out from above him, he breathed in a calming rhythm. He would use this time to try and rid himself of his nervousness.

* * *

"Ahhh," Akane winced when she saw the state of her hands. Her knuckles were cut up and bruised, trickles of blood dripping from her wounds. She had been at the beach since she woke up that morning, and had been venting her accumulated anger by punching one of the scattered palm trees.

*Crack!* the joints in her hand popped when her fist came down on the tree trunk again. The entire tree rattled and shook as she continued slamming her fists against it again and again. Her wounds were now producing even more blood, staining the tree as she kept assaulting it.

"Ah crap..." she stopped her odd form of training when she noticed a slip of crumpled paper on the ground. She bent over and picked it up, shaking the grains of sand off it while straightening it out. "Damn idiot...".

She licked the back of the paper and slapped into onto the tree again. On the beaten sheet of parchment was a name, written quickly and crudely. Hajime. In her mind she wasn't taking out her anger on a tree, she was taking it out on him.

She was preparing herself for what she thought she'd have to do. He'd been avoiding her, so she'd found a way to force him to talk. She planned on fighting him, forcing him to say something, anything. Today was the day she would have answers from him.

* * *

"What's this..." Hinata stepped out of his cottage and was met with a crumbled up piece of paper on his doorstep. Curiosity took hold of him, the scrap finding its way to his hands. He smoothed it out as best as he could, flinching when his hands found that part of it was damp.

"Hajime" his name was written sloppily in the middle of the paper. Among that he noticed that there were many small, yet very noticeable red smears all along the surface. The parchment reeked of copper. The red stains covering the paper were blood, clearly.

"Meet me at the beach. We have to talk." is what he saw when he turned the paper over. Now he was slightly worried. The message was very poorly written, now dried blood substituted for a pen or pencil. He crumpled the paper up again and shoved it in his pocket. With quick feet he decided to head for the beach. He hated to do it, but for now, his plans with Akane had to go on the back burner.

Was someone hurt? Did Komaeda wake up after all? Maybe he hurt someone. It certainly wouldn't be beyond him. As the theoretical scenarios began getting worse and worse, his pace quickly turned into a jog, and then a run. The more he thought, the more he panicked. The more he panicked, the faster he ran.

He did not expect to see her waiting at the beach. Standing near the shores edge, Akane had her back to him. From where he stood, he could see her bloodstained knuckles, wrapped up in stained bandages.

"Akane!" he shouted before running to her side. She turned as his words met her ears, her eyes sending chills down his spine. Never before had she looked at him so angrily. "Who...what happened to your hands?"

"Don't worry about that." she said, crossing her arms.

Still worried, he reached out towards one of her palms. His hand was slapped away almost immediately. She shot him another angry look as she let her arms hang down, grinding her teeth together while her fists were curling up at her sides.

"How can't I? You're bleeding! Just tell me what happened!" he urged again.

"You can't do that!"

"Ah!"

She swung at him with her left, following with a right. Missing, she continued throwing punches wildly. He walked backwards, narrowly avoiding her attacks one after another.

"H-Hey! What are you...Ah!"

"You can't avoid me, and then act like you wanna talk! You wanna talk to me!? Then beat me in a fight!"

Her plan had changed one he had sought her out. Now she wasn't so eager to speak to him. In her boiling anger, she had decided that she would make him work for it. He would have to fight her before she would listen to anything he had to say.


	9. Goodbye, problems! Hello, new ones!

"Throw a damn punch already!" Hajime had not retaliated against her assault. Rather, he was leading her around the beach as he avoided anything and everything she threw at him. He could see every move she would make beforehand, making it seemingly impossible to touch him.

"I won't." he refused to fight back. Akane quickened her movements after he denied her demand. She felt even more insulted. He was refusing to fight back, and was dodging all of her attacks with little to no effort. "I don't want to hurt you."

"You already have!" he lost focus, surprised by what she had said. In his state of confusion she took advantage of his negligence. Her left arm shot out, clasping onto his right shoulder. Pinned, he couldn't get out of the way when her right fist came down on his stomach. She released her grip after contact, and he backed away a few paces to let out a few hoarse coughs. "All this time, you've been ignoring me, and that hurt!"

She bolted at him again and tried sweeping him off his legs. He was still trying to catch his breath, barely managing to hop over her kick and stay on his feet. He was still winded, breathing breaths that brought pain at each inhale.

'I've hurt her already?' he thought as he regained his composure, blocking a punch aimed at his face. She said that he had been avoiding her earlier, and he wouldn't deny that. But he was truly saddened to hear that she was hurt by it. He would never dream of hurting her in any way, yet he already had.

He was becoming lost in his thoughts, taking a heavy kick to his ribs. He jumped back to try and gain some space, but she wouldn't let him get away so easily. Again, she blitzed him, this time landing a pair of punches on his chest.

He cocked back his right fist, ready to fight back. But he couldn't bring himself to throw a punch. He lowered his arm, taking another hit from her as he did. He needed to think of another way to resolve this. Taking another hit, this time from her knee, he knew there wasn't one.

He finally threw a punch at her. His fist landed on her stomach, with enough force to stun, but not hurt her.

"Just let me say what I have to say!" Hajime tried again to reason with her.

"Shut up and fight!" Akane was beyond reasoning with.

'I'm more afraid than ever.' he readied himself as she charged at him again. They fell back into the same routine, Hinata leading Akane around as he dodged her attacks. It wasn't as easy as it seemed, however. She was making up various attacks, each more complex than the last. Although she wasn't landing many, most only missed by a fraction of a second.

"I'm sorry, alright! I'm sorry!" he yelled.

"Sorry for what!?"

"For avoiding you all this time, I really do regret it."

Akane grabbed and lifted him by his collar. He let her do it, guessing he'd be able to get a few words out if he did.

"What're you talking about!" even in her hands she didn't let up on him. She dragged him to the nearest palm tree, pinning him by his shoulders. His lips parted to answer her question, letting out only air when she kneed him in the gut.

"I was...nervous!" he brought his right leg up, pushing his foot against her stomach to push her back. She looked confused now. She ran at him mindlessly, swinging her right fist. He sent out his left, catching it. The same happened with her left. They were now face to face, her fists held closed by his hands.

"Like hell you were!" Akane, unable to hit him, pulled him towards her. He was unable to do anything when she slammed her own head into his. Their foreheads now resting against eachother, they were eye to eye. "What would you have to be nervous about!"

He felt a warm line of blood run out of his right nostril. His heart beat resonated loudly in his eardrums. Now was his chance. All he had to do was say it. All he had to was tell her.

"I was...I thought that..." he cloud feel her breath on his face. "I thought that you would reject me, if I told you how I felt..."

"W-What?" she pulled her head back to get a clearer view of his face. He smiled at her, the line of blood from his nose was now dripping off of his chin. She stammered, thrown off by what he had said.

"I love you, Akane..."

Her eyes went wide and her heart started racing. His words echoed over and over again in her head. She couldn't speak, but wanted him to. She wanted to hear him say it again.

"You what?..."

"I love you..." she gasped when he let go of her hands and fell forward. Her arms hooked under his, holding him up as his head rested atop her shoulder. "Please tell me you feel the same..."

"I've been worried for no reason...I feel like an idiot." she laughed. "I...I love you, too."

"You thought-"

"That you wouldn't feel that way about me? Yeah...I did."

"I'm glad I could prove you wrong." he could finally feel the weight coming off of his body. "So, what do we do now?"

"Well, I think we need to clean you up first. Then, maybe...we can go tell the others."

"I think I could've won that fight, if I had tried."

"Oh, shut up."

With newfound confidence in himself, Hajime pulled away. And with great happiness, he leaned back in, lightly kissing her on her lips.

In the end, their problems weren't as complicated as they thought they would be. They didn't need to argue. They certainly didn't need to fight. The entire time, they had felt the same. All they needed to do was admit it.

* * *

"What the hell are we supposed to do!?" Soda was panicking frantically. He paced back and forth, while on the side, Fuyuhiko was struggling to maintain his composure. Before them, one of the pods in the control room was opened, the body that was inside was nowhere to be found.

"What you need to do, is shut the fuck up, and calm down!"

"And how am I supposed to do that!? I was only gone for an hour! And when I came back, HE is gone, and there's a goddamn SEVERED ARM on the floor!"

"I said calm down!"

"We're gonna die, aren't we!? I don't want to die!"

"Pull yourself together, dumbass!" a stinging slap came across Soda's cheek, effectively calming him down.

But he had every right to be so afraid. In the short time he had been away, Komaeda Nagito had disappeared. He was gone, and it was a mystery to where his intentions would lead him.


	10. Missing Person

"So what happens now? He's got free roam of the island, and I'm pretty sure he has something sharp." Fuyuhiko and Hajime discussed the problem before them, staring at the severed arm that lay on the ground.

"Well, someone needs to be here at all times now. Maybe even have two people here during the day, instead of just one." Hajime's eyes scanned over the pods before looking back at Fuyuhiko.

"Hey Kazuichi! Help me get rid of this arm!" Fuyuhiko shouted, walking off towards the mechanic. Hinata's attention went back to the arm. Like he remembered from their closing moments in the simulation, it was indeed a woman's arm. As he continued to stare at the cold, lifeless limb, a thought came to mind. What could have been going through Komaeda'd head that would bring him to cut it off?

"Hey, please tell me you're not gonna stay here tonight." Akane appeared by his side, bringing his attention to her. "I still want to talk to you about...stuff."

"I'll fill in for ya tonight." Kazuichi said in front of him. He and Kuzuryu were now struggling to get the arm into a bag without touching it. "I need to make up for letting him get away. I guess I can start by giving you the night off."

"Are you sure?" Hinata asked.

"I'm the one who brought it up, so yeah, I'm pretty sure." he pumped his fist when Fuyuhiko finally managed to kick the arm into the bag.

"Oh I know this isn't the time, but I'm happy for the two of you!" Sonia mused as she circled the room again. She had been checking up on all the others, for signs of 'life'. "Speaking of which, when can we expect to see some little Hinata's walking about?"

"Okay so I'm gonna go look around for Komaeda now. Fuyuhiko, why don't you come with me?" he grabbed his friend by the arm, tugging at him as he tried to drag him away. As they neared the door, the young yakuza felt the need to shout out something.

"Kazuichi, go and bury that damn arm!"

The two of them quickly left the building, and started searching for the missing person. Akane heated up immensely at the idea of having children, while Sonia laughed at her expense.

* * *

"He left a blood trail..." after a short time walking outside, the two of them did indeed find a trail of blood on the ground. It was thin, and faint, but it was something that they could follow at the least. Without a second thought they started walking along the thin line.

"So, do you think he's dangerous?" Fuyuhiko felt the need to ask.

"It's Komaeda. It'd be dangerous to think that he wasn't." Hinata made a fair point.

As they followed the line of blood, they started to notice something. The trail had become more complex. Complex meaning it looked like he began stumbling around like he was half asleep. He had lost a lot of blood, that much was apparent, even if the trail was scarce of evidence. Most likely, his arm was wrapped up in whatever he could find.

Eventually, the line had led them somewhere. In his injured state, Komaeda wandered onto the grounds of the hotel. Past the gate, the blood trail had went straight, avoiding the cottages. As comforting it was to know he stayed away from their rooms, it was worse seeing that the trail ended in front of the pool. There were no signs of blood in the water, nor any hints where he went from this point.

"Fuck." Kuzuryu grunted before looking to Hinata to decide what they would do from here. He said nothing, his red eyes shut as he stood there, arms crossed. His nose was twitching, prompting Fuyuhiko to do the same out of instinct. He immediately cringed when a putrid scent wafted into his nostrils. "What the hell is that? Smells fucking disgusting.

"You smell it too? Smells like...something's burning." Hinata put a possible label on the scent. His friend couldn't help but inhale again to confirm it, almost gagging as the fowl aroma hit him again.

"So..." Fuyuhiko moved his hand over his mouth, trying not to gag while he spoke. "The kitchen...right?"

"We'll see." Hinata started walking towards the restaurant. Fuyuhiko followed, his palm now covering his nose as well as his mouth. As they slowly climbed the stairs to the hotels restaurant, the unpleasant aroma only grew in strength. Kuzuryu's eyes were starting to water, nearing his breaking point. Only when they reached the kitchen did things worsen for him.

The kitchen was a complete mess. The floor, and some parts of the walls were splattered with blood. Also on the floor, was a scrap of cloth, torn up and soaked in the bodily fluid. As Hajime took note of the messy state of the room, Fuyuhiko tapped him on his shoulder.

"One of the burners is on..." his attention was pointed to the stove. The appliance was on, as he was told, a pan resting on the heated surface. "Is...is that...oh god!"

In the pan were bits and pieces of what looked like meat and skin, completely burnt black. Under the flesh, a small amount of blood sizzled lightly and without much sound.

"The sick bastard cauterized his wound!"

"I'm surprised we didn't find him passed out from the pain."

"Little fucker got lucky...turn that shit off. I'm gonna be sick."

Hajime did as he said, for the sake of them both, taking the pan and tossing it onto the counter after shutting the stove off. Komaeda was nowhere to be found. The mess he left in the kitchen was the last trace of him.

* * *

"It...it wasn't real? Everything I did, was for nothing. And them...they're all alive. Alive. Alive. They're alive. Ahahaha..."

Komaeda whispered to himself as he sat in his current hiding place. He was confused. He thought he was dead. A sacrifice for hope, to end the ultimate despair. But they were still alive. And so was he. He was struggling to get a grip on reality, to come to terms with what he did, or thought he did.

"I'll be alright. I'll be alright. No matter how big the despair...hope will always win in the end."


	11. Small Talk

"So what're we gonna do from now on?" Kazuichi asked. The five friends had gathered in the control room the morning after Komaeda had vanished. The question was aimed at Hajime, whom had said the night before that he'd think things over.

"We stay alert. Other than that, we can't really do anything." Fuyuhiko gave his own answer. Hinata said nothing to object, nodding when Soda looked at him for confirmation.

"There isn't much we can do, is there?" Sonia questioned that they could do anything to handle the situation.

"No, not until we find him, or he reveals himself to us. So until then, we keep an open eye at all times. That's going to mean less sleep for most of us." Hajime spoke an irritating truth. Because of Komaeda, their peaceful lives on the island had to be adjusted for their own safety. "Fuyuhiko, you agreed to stay with me here during the night, right?"

"Yeah. Sucks, but I'll do it." he reluctantly agreed.

"Wait!" Kazuichi interrupted, making a few of his friend flinch. "What's gonna stop him from breaking into someone's cottage and doing something!?"

"Even with one arm, I can't say that that'd be out of his realm of capabilities." presented with another possible safety precaution, Hinata probed his brain for an answer. "It's up to you all, of course, but we could all sleep here. For the time being."

"I would feel better knowing you were all nearby." Sonia quickly accepted the proposal.

"I planned on staying with Hajime, so count me in!" Akane had already made up her mind.

"Sleep here? Where, on the floor?" Kazuichi wasn't so willing to give up his bed.

"It's alright if you stay in your cottage. It'll make it easier for him to pick you off." Fuyuhiko teased, an odd amount of sincerity in his tone.

"No no no, fine! I'll stay too!"

"So it's agreed then. Until it's safe to do otherwise, we all sleep here from now on."

The basis of their safety measures now established, they began padding on extra details. The night watch would be taken in shifts of two, with one rotation in the middle of the night. Hajime and Fuyuhiko would take the first shift, Akane and Sonia taking the second, with Kazuichi being a replacement for a different person when needed . No more than three people could leave during the day, leaving two people in the building at all times.

Right now there was no such thing as excessive measures. Safety was now the number one priority. Hopefully, no one would end up hurt. Hopefully, Komaeda wasn't planning to hurt someone.

* * *

Night One/First Shift

"You used that word? Exactly?"

"Yeah...I did."

Fuyuhiko and Hajime sat on the floor atop their makeshift beds. The others had fell asleep a few hours ago leaving the two to start their night watch. To pass the time, they made small talk, the current topic being Hajime's confession.

"Since when did you jump from like, to that?"

"When I started getting to know her. In there. But everything else came first, of course. Besides, I was still nervous then."

His friend couldn't help but smile and congratulate himself. His half assed idea turned out to be a matchmaking success.

"Hey!" Akane's body shot up, her attempt at whispering almost turning into yelling. "Mind your own damn business!"

"Go back to sleep." Fuyuhiko spat back as quietly as possible. "Before the ghosts get you."

"You don't want to do that." Hinata sighed, shaking his head as the two of them watched Owari stand. She starting walking towards Fuyuhiko, cracking her knuckles as she approached.

"I'm gonna rip your good eye out of its socket, if you don't shut the HELL up." she gripped Kuzuryu by the shoulder and lifted him as she leaned in, spitting venom into his ear. He only giggled in reply. Beside them, Hinata stared into space to avoid involvement.

* * *

Night Three/Second Shift

"I did?"

"Yes, you did."

Sonia and Akane conversed quietly as the others slept. They shared a seat on one of the empty pods, a short distance from where the boys slept.

"I can't see it." Akane was oblivious to the point her friend was making. She shook her head confidently, however. Sonia would have to try harder in order for her to understand.

"Well...let's see...how would you feel if, you thought Hinata liked another girl? Could you have said anything to him then?"

"About what?"

Sonia closed her eyes as her fingernails roughly went over the back of her head. This effort was seeming to be a lost cause. She shrugged, smiling at Akane, who smiled back. Looking over towards her resting companions she could see Hinata waving her off before he rolled onto his side. He was telling her to give up, something she was going to do anyway.

* * *

Night Four/First Shift

"Do you think you could make a boat?"

"I can make A boat. It's not gonna be anything you'd find at any fancy ass dealership, though. I don't have the materials to make anything too extravagant. What kind did you have in mind?"

"One with a motor. To travel in between islands."

"So I'd have to build a motor, and a boat. I think we might have enough junk lying around to do that."

Hinata and Soda had just settled on building a boat. They talked more about it, discussing what its primary use would be. For the most part, it would be used to travel to the nearby islands and scavenge for anything of use. Any other reasons would present themselves eventually.

"Oh, I've got an idea. We could ditch Komaeda on another island."

"Why."

"Because it's Komaeda."

"I don't think it would end there. He'd probably find his own fully functioning boat and come back."

"Come on, nobody can be that lucky."

Hinata looked at his friend with a brow raised. His only response was a shrug. Silence ensued, engulfing the room. The only sound heard was the light humming of the machinery around them. He closed his eyes to relax. Soda did the same, pulling down his beanie so that the brim was over his eyes. Every now and then one of them would say a word to make sure the other was awake.

* * *

"They really are committed, aren't they?" Komaeda spoke to himself as he slowly moved his fingers across his stump. The skin there was extremely rough, comparable to jagged stone. A slight amount of pain still lingered, a constant reminder of his self inflicted burn wound. "I can wait."

He leaned against the wall of the control room's building, soaking in the cold night air. As he said, he was completely fine with having to wait. He had a plan in mind, but that plan didn't include getting caught. He debated acting on it tonight, which was why he hovered around the building at the moment.

"It'll happen sooner or later. With my luck, it could go either way."


	12. Hastily Made Plans

'What would you think about this...' Hinata wished he could ask for their opinion, but it was an impossible wish. Conflict was churning within, whether or not to show mercy towards Komaeda. He did not want to bring harsh judgement on him, but if Komaeda was intent on harming someone, he'd have to be prepared to put him down. It felt wrong to even consider that. Killing someone, justifiable or not. 'I can't help but think that you'd give him a chance.'

If he could be reformed it would probably take some doing. But nothing was impossible. Luckily for Hajime, this decision wasn't his alone to make. He had the others opinions to consider as well.

After probing their feelings, it was made clear that Komaeda wasn't very liked. Popular opinion was that he be incarcerated in some way. Locked away, or tied up, it didn't really matter as long as he was restrained. Personal feelings aside, Hinata couldn't help but think that to be unfair. Being here on this island was a chance for a better life, a chance to change for the better. They all had equal right to this opportunity.

"After we find him, we can see out what his intentions are. We'll make a decision then."

"So you're willing to let him walk around unattended?" Sonia was the first to respond, her question speaking for them collectively. The others said noting, waiting for an answer.

"We don't have to be accustomed to death anymore." the rebuttal struck a vein of guilt in everyone, even himself. "I want to believe he knows that as well."

"And if he doesn't care about that, what then." Fuyuhiko spoke next.

"Then we deal with him. Without anyone getting hurt."

"And you can assure that? Nobody would get hurt at all?" Soda voiced his doubts. "Him included?"

"I think I know how I can reason with him. Convince him to behave." Hinata received a few looks of concern. "I'll talk to him alone-"

"No! I mean...I... That's dangerous, ain't it?" Akane sprung at the chance to oppose his idea. She was worried for his safety, that worry only strengthened by his lack of reassurance.

"It'll be okay." was all he could think to say.

"And when did you plan on doing this?" Fuyuhiko interrupted.

"I don't know..."

That was a lie. He played his cards close to his chest, to keep the others uninvolved in his plan. He said he wanted to talk to Komaeda, but he didn't mention that it wouldn't be on his own terms. He wasn't planning on finding him, he was planning on being found. He figured, that if he wandered the island alone and in the dead of night, it might give Komaeda the urge to attack.

"Let's just leave this discussion for another time." Hinata wanted to kill the conversation. Nightfall was upon them, and he had his mind set on acting on his plan tonight. "Who's on watch tonight?"

"That'd be us." Kazuichi said, and arm resting on Akane's shoulder. Inside, Hajime smiled, an opportunity presenting itself.

"Kazuichi, why don't I sit in for you instead? I'm feeling wide awake." another lie. He hadn't been sleeping well as of late, and was feeling especially worn out today.

"You don't have to ask me twice!" Soda wasted no time in taking the offer. Flashing his sharky grin, he clapped his hands together before waltzing over to his bed. Throwing himself onto his blankets, he raised a thumb up before shouting, "Thanks, Hajime!"

"It's no problem at all."

* * *

"Hm?" something didn't feel right. She tried to keep her eyes shut, to rest like he had offered. While she would like to continue her relaxing, a nagging feeling in her gut just wouldn't go away. Her nose even started twitching, and that was when she finally noticed. A familiar scent had suddenly disappeared.

"Hajime?" her eyes opened to see that he was gone. She sprung up in an instant, slowly moving around the room, quietly calling his name. To no avail she continued poking around, nervousness starting to kick in. "Hajime!"

"Huh!" Fuyuhiko's body shot up, startled by Akane's sudden shout. His head swiveled back and forth, slowly and still half asleep. He started falling asleep again, still sitting up, before he was startled once again by her shouting. "What's...what's going...on?"

He stood up, eyes fluttering, trying to jumpstart himself awake. Dragging himself along, he bumped into a few of the pods as he walked to the source of the noise.

"Akane?...The hell are you shouting for?"

"He told me I could take a break so I did! My eyes were only closed for a few minutes, and he disappeared!"

"He's probably just outside..." he groaned, struggling to keep his eyes open. Sluggishly, he shuffled over to the rooms double doors and lightly gripped one of the handles. There was immediate resistance when he tugged at the handle as the sound of rattling metal came from the other side. "Goddamn piece of...there's something blocking the door."

He started pulling at the door with more force, Akane joining him by grabbing the other handle. Neither door still wouldn't budge, only thrashing in place as they struggled.

"What's with all the nooiiiiiseeeeee!?" an annoyed shout came from Soda across the room. He and Sonia were awoken by the racket being made by the shaking door, to which they both approached slowly. "What're you two doing?"

"Hajime is gone, and we're locked in..." Fuyuhiko mumbled, wiping a line of drool off of his face.

"I need you guys to wake up!" Akane shouted, clapping her hands over and over.

* * *

"What were you doing, wandering around by yourself? Don't you know how dangerous that could be?"

"I was looking for you."

"Really? Then my luck must be as reliable as ever! I've been waiting for a chance like this, but you've all been keen in making sure something like this didn't happen. I'm sorry about your head, by the way. But not that much."

"We need to talk."

"Don't think you can demand anything from me. You're the one tied up, after all. Ahahah...maybe this will be easier than I thought. And I figured that you would give me the most trouble."

"I don't want any trouble."

"Oh? Then tell me what it is that you do want."

"I just want to prove to you, that we can live here together...free from despair."


	13. Komaeda

"Free from despair?" Nagito seemed to be very surprised by his statement. He knelt down on one knee, eyeing him with his head cocked sideways. He was indeed fond of hope, but Hajime did not think that his attention would be gained so easily. "The only way that could happen, is if I get rid of you all, right?"

"Do you understand that the 'school trip', wasn't real?"

"You're changing the subject already?" he chuckled, seeing that Hinata was trying to control the conversation. "Of course I do. I may be garbage, but I'm not completely stupid. I'm alive, after all."

"So you should also understand that we don't need to kill eachother to survive." he only laughed again at his words. His laughter was irritating, but it would need to be overlooked for the time being. Hajime sat still, waiting for the laughter to cease before speaking again. "You don't need to hurt anyone."

'You're never going to make any progress talking like that. You sound bland. Generic. Boring.' Hinata's eyes went wide at the sound of his own voice echoing in the back of his head. The tone was stern and condescending, commanding attention. Nagito's own expression went blank as he watched Hinata experience what looked like an anxiety attack.

'Let me do the talking.'

"No!" Komaeda jumped back, caught off guard by his sudden yell. Hinata's stomach rose and fell quickly, beads of sweat dripping from his forehead as he fell over onto his side. "I don't want to...I don't want to...disappear..."

"Disappear? I'm not going to kill you just yet."

'He will kill you. Kill us. I've already given you aid before. You would not have lasted that long fighting her without my help.' Hinata sat himself back up slowly, closing his eyes when he heard Komaeda's laugh reach his ears again. His head was pounding, this throbbing self induced headache only get stronger as he argued with "himself".

"As an Ultimate, I can't help but pity you. Hold tight, I'll be back with some water." Nagito stood up to leave the room, but not before tightening the rope around Hajime's wrists and ankles. The knots holding him had just been tightened, he saw it himself. Which was why it surprised him greatly when he felt the rope around his wrists come undone.

'All the talents in the world are yours, even luck. It would be idiotic to not make use of what you have.'

"I am not Kamukura...Izuru." he spoke to himself again, undoing the rope around his ankles by simply tugging at one of the ends. "So tell me what you would say...just this once..."

'Finally, something that might be able to hold my interest.'

* * *

"If he dies, I'll kill him..."

"He's not gonna die."

"Are you sure you can't get that door open?"

"I think he hid all of my tools. I can't find anything to work with."

The four of them were still trapped, Kazuichi talking to Akane to pass time. Sonia and Fuyuhiko were pacing around the room, filling the air with occasional yawns. They were forced to give up there attempts at leaving, and wait until Hajime returned. And that was a reasonably sized "if".

"Fuck this. I'm going back to my bed." the others silently watched Fuyuhiko return to his bed, grumbling as he threw his covers over himself. He stared at the ceiling as he lay there, unable to fall back asleep as he wanted.

* * *

'I am your thoughts. You are my voice.'

"Aha...ah! Ahahahah! How exciting!"

Hajime was currently restraining Nagito with the same rope that had previously bound him. The Ultimate Lucky student was laughing hysterically as his clothes soaked up the spilled water on the floor beneath him. He had returned with a bowl of the liquid as promised, and was immediately ambushed by his own prisoner. He was now tied up himself, laying flat on his stomach.

"Someone like you is so predictable. You in particular, are very boring." Hinata's monotone voice brought Komaeda to silence. Grunting, he turned his head just enough so that he could see Hajime out of the corner of his eye. His appearance was now very condescending, looking down on him as he pressed his right foot onto his lower back.

"What was that? Say that again!" his voice carried a great amount of excitement in its tone. He thrashed about on the floor, causing Hinata to step back. Like he was in a hurry, Komaeda sat himself up, eyes wide as he waited to hear it again.

"I have no reason to repeat myself." he seemed equally satisfied hearing those words. He giggled and bounced in place, eyes rapidly looking up and down Hinata's body.

"Is that really you? You said we wouldn't meet again!"

"I'm surprised to say that I was wrong."

"I can't believe it! Ahaha, this whole time, it was you!"

"Now are you willing to listen."

"Of course, of course! Anything you have to say, I am listening!"

* * *

"You're going to hurt yourself! Akane!" Sonia shouted as she watched her friend charge at the metal doors, driving her fist into its surface. The gymnast repeatedly slammed her knuckles onto the metal doors, breathing heavily while she kept a constant pace.

"Hey, how well do you think the door hinges are attached?" Fuyuhiko poked Kazuichi with his elbow, the both of them flinching as they continued watching Owari try to beat the door down.

"Can't be that good, by now. " he answered, wincing as he saw Akane stop and clutch her left wrist. Her hand was shaking as it hung down, sprained. However, she only grit her teeth as she opted to start kicking the door instead.

"Come help me out..." he said hesitantly, slowly walking towards their struggling friend. Soda followed, after letting out a long sigh.

The two boys joined in the beating of the double doors, one kicking, the other throwing their entire body at it. Even Sonia joined in, letting her foot fall on the door as well. The three of them had decided to help their friend in her painful effort, something that wasn't lost on Akane. She smiled as she took a few reassuring breaths, and went back at it with full force.

* * *

"What was your title?" Nagito felt like a small child being told a story. As he heard the details behind what he was told was the 'Hope Cultivation Project', he was ecstatic. To think that Hinata Hajime wasn't the worthless, talentless person he had thought he was, it really held his attention well. "Well, Kamukura?"

"Hinata." those words were actually his own. Nagito only shrugged, not caring about what name he would rather be called. "Do you agree upon what we discussed earlier."

"Yes!"

"How can I believe you."

"Because I believe you! When you say that helping the others overcome their despair will inspire great hope, I believe that, and I want to see it!"

'There. As predictable as I thought. Hopefully the others will be more interesting.'

"Now will you tell me? Since you actually ARE an Ultimate, I need to know your title."

The voice of Izuru had ceased guiding him in speaking. This situation had been resolved, and he was no longer needed. All that was needed to sway Komaeda was a clear mind and a silver tongue. Not that he was lying about what he said though. Dealing with the others would bring about hope, and that was all he needed to convince him. Telling him about Kamukura was the lock that sealed the deal.

"The title they gave me..." Nagito shook his head up and down, silently waiting. "The title they gave me was...Ultimate Hope"

He seemed shocked when he heard it. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. He looked disappointed in some way, maybe even a bit jealous. And then, he smiled.

"If it means anything, I'm sorry about the 'trying to kill you' thing."


	14. Afterwards

"You didn't knock me out."

"Mhm."

"You didn't tie me up."

"Okay."

"You definitely didn't plan on threatening my life."

"Of course not. Why is this important again?"

"If they found out you tried to hurt me they would tear you apart. "

"Fair enough."

The two of them had just emerged from their "interrogation" room, the office that was in the hotels secondary building. After clearing the air and establishing how Nagito would "explain" what happened, Hajime fell silent. Looking back at what had transpired within his own mind left him puzzled.

He was now greatly confused. It had seemed, at least when talking to Nagito, that he and Kamukura were separate from eachother. But he could distinctly recall a a short conversation he had with Kazuichi awhile back that would say otherwise.

'I need some help here, you still have a bit of Kamukura in ya, right?'

'We're one in the same, so yeah, I guess so? Why?'

"Are you alright?" Nagito asked him, having seen his eyes go wide. Hajime drew in a deep breath before looking back at him, with a clearly fake smile. The two kept walking, and were now close to where all of their friends were locked away. As the two of them walked towards the building, Hajime stopped when saw that the left door was missing. Nagito stopped as well, a few steps behind him.

Hinata broke into a sprint, leaving Komaeda behind. He stopped at the door, and peeked his head inside. The missing door was there, off its hinges and placed against the wall.

"Guys? Are you in here?" he said quietly, the rest of the room was dark, barely illuminated by the light coming from the capsules. He stood there, still leaning in halfway. Behind him he could hear Nagito finally catching up and stopping behind him. He copied him, leaning in at the same angle, his head barely able to look past Hinata's.

"Hello?" Nagito spoke normally, his voice easily carried by the rooms acoustics. In the darkness of the control room a gasp was heard, followed by a grunt. Along with all of that, Hajime could hear a light whirling sound. His eyebrows both shot up, realizing that something had been thrown.

"Ah!" Hajime was hit in the face by a flying wrench. The small tool had appeared out of nowhere, catching him by surprise.

"Hajime?" Akane's voice came out from the dark with a surprised tone. At that moment the lights came on. Huddled together were the two girls and Fuyuhiko, with Kazuichi across the room controlling the lights. They all gasped as they saw Hinata sprawled out on the floor while Komaeda stood there, scratching his head.

"I think you knocked him out. Kamukura? Can you hear me?" Nagito knelt down and poked the back of his head, with no response in return. Flipping him off of his stomach he laughed at the large red mark left on the center of his forehead.

"Don't touch him! That was supposed to be you!" he turned to look at Akane, who was now struggling to stand up. She used Sonia to help support her left side, her left ankle in too much pain to stand on. Her left hand hung down lifelessly and her right held another wrench, larger and heavier than the last. Without warning she let the tool fly, aiming for whatever part of Nagito she could hit. He threw his body back out the door, narrowly avoiding being hit.

"Kazuichi, can you-"

"I'm on it,"

He interrupted Sonia and quickly walked towards his unconscious friend.

"Back up, man." he pointed at Nagito, whom raised both of his arms in the air. Without taking his eyes away from his, Soda dragged Hinata to the nearest capsule, and sat him up against it. Hinata's head immediately fell over to his right, causing him to fall over. His head hit the ground with a heavy thud. "Aw, dammit...sorry about that that."

"If he had hid the tools better this wouldn't have happened ." Fuyuhiko laughed, somehow finding a way to blame Hinata for what happened to himself.

* * *

"Sorry about this...but I gotta do it." Soda was adjusting the lock on Komaeda's cottage, so that it could be locked from the outside. This was something that they had agreed on doing without Hinata's opinion, at least until further notice.

"It's alright, I understand." he was sitting on his bed watching him work, waiting for him to be done so he could sleep. With all that had happened, it was surprisingly still very dark outside.

"When Hajime wakes up, if he says so, I'll change the lock back. Someone will come by in the morning and let you out. Until then," Kazuichi cut himself off by shutting the door and locking it. He shuddered shortly after, his nervousness letting itself out.

"Hey, Kazuichi, help me out over here." Fuyuhiko caught his attention, asking for help in carrying Hajime's limp body. He walked over without question, taking his free arm and slinging it over his shoulder. "Alright...lets go."

"Wait, his room is this way."

"Akane wants him in her room."

"Huh?"

"C'mon man, I don't feel like arguing about this." the two brought Hinata to Owari's cottage, and then stopped again as they stepped.

"Where do we put him?"

"On the bed, you idiot. What would you rather do, leave him on the floor? Maybe have them leave the door open while we're at it?"

"My head hurts..." Hajime mumbled under his breath, and in his still unconscious state.

"I know it does, buddy. But we're gonna have to put you on the hard ground, because granpa Kazuichi can't stand the idea of you laying in bed with a girl," Fuyuhiko talked sarcastically, with a tone you might use when speaking to a child. Kazuichi couldn't help but laugh as he complied with setting him down on the bed. "Go and help Sonia. She's still helping Akane walk over here. I'm going to bed."

"Aye aye, Sir!" Soda straightened his posture, saluting Kuzuryu as stood there with an even more irritated look on his face.

"My head hurts..." Hajime grunted this time, rolling over on the bed so he was on his stomach.

"Sorry." they both said. Fuyuhiko shot his bright haired friend one last glare before quickly leaving, in a hurry to get some sleep.


	15. Free Time: I'm Feelin' Lucky!

"Right, so you're free now...um...there's breakfast...at the restaurant." Kazuichi had locked eyes with Nagito, who was sitting still on his bed. The sun had rose a few hours ago, however people were just now waking up. The only people who were still asleep were Akane and Hajime, and the others didn't want to disturb them again. Soda had already tried, and received a very convincing threat from the gymnast that would make anyone uneasy. "So, I'm leaving now...see ya later...I guess."

It was awkward trying to talk to Nagito like everything was normal. It wasn't showing right now, but there was a side to him that just couldn't be forgotten. His twisted point of view was enough to drive him to kill even himself after all. Soda felt like it was wrong to allow him to walk about freely, as did the others. The only reason that he wasn't tied up right now was that Hajime had brought him back. They didn't know how it happened, but until they did, they would exercise caution around him.

"Wait, where are you going?" the mechanic flinched when he was stopped from leaving as he wanted. He turned around, and his eyes locked on to Nagito's once again.

"I've gotta...go back over there. Where everyone else is still laid up! I-I'll see ya later!" he didn't give him a chance to stop him again, swiveling around and running away as fast as he could. Nagito stood up from his bed and went to his door, where he could see Kazuichi running out of the hotel and in the direction of the control room.

* * *

'Look, I just want to eat some food, and go back to bed. Just, go and do whatever. As long as you show up tonight so someone can lock you up again.'

Fuyuhiko had told him off when he had asked how the day would usually be spent. Before telling him to go away, all he really said was that nothing happens until the next person wakes up. It could be assumed that if he tried to interact with anyone to pass the time, they would act nervously, and maybe even run away like Soda did.

"The day to myself, hm?" after talking to Fuyuhiko at the restaurant, Nagito had quickly returned to his cottage without eating. The idea of a free day brought a small bit of excitement, and he wanted to make the best of the time he had. Thoughts going by quickly, he had decided to stop at the beach first. As close and accessible as it was, it made for an easy first choice.

"It'll be just like the first day," he talked to himself as he walked to his destination, recalling the brief time everyone swam at the beginning of the 'school trip'. He remembered that the skies suddenly became pitch black, at the series of events that would come after. That was the exact point in time when things all went south. "It's almost ironic."

He stopped as soon as he felt the sand beneath his feet. Unlike that moment, the sky was bright and blue, free of any and all clouds. And he was alone. This couldn't be any farther from that moment as it already was. As he started walking towards the shore he started to undress. First his jacket, then his shirt. Then came his shoes and socks, his pants remaining. He left his now folded clothes under a palm tree, and rolled up his pant legs as tightly as he could, stopping just above his knees.

The water was unbelievably cold. And that was just the tide rolling over his bare feet. As he walked against and into the waves it only became colder, a welcoming feeling as the hot sun beat down on his pale skin. He quickly found the best position to enjoy himself, floating on his back, eyes closed.

He became unaware of where the waters were carrying him, unable to notice anything except the gentle rocking of his body atop the waves.

* * *

"Where are my-" after some time, about 45 minutes, Nagito had ended up ashore. He was thrown off, not seeing his clothes or the palm tree he had left them under. Trudging through the sand he could notice that this seemed like a different beach. There were no trees here, and the road leading to the hotel was nowhere to be seen.

"Oh no...Ha! Hahaha! Ahahaha!" he couldn't control his laughter. He had in fact, drifted far away from where he had came from. If he wasn't at another beach on the same island, then he was definitely at the beach of another island entirely. "It didn't even feel like I was floating that long! Kamukuraaaa! Sodaaaa!"

He called out their names, in case they happened to be in earshot. There was no answer. He laughed again, and continued walking down the beach. The sand was getting deeper as he moved away from the shore, his feet almost becoming covered in the grains.

"Ow," his toe had hit something beneath a mound of sand he was walking by. He tripped over and fell as well, covering his still damp body in the rough substance. "What?"

He lifted his right foot and brought it down on the mound with a thud. He was expecting his leg to go through, surprised that it stopped at the surface. Getting on his knees he began brushing away the sand with his right hand.

"A boat!" is what he found after a considerable amount of cleaning. It was a rowboat, oars and all. Along with that was a clear white shopping bag that held what we're probably someone's supplies for a day on the water. Inside were a few water bottles and some now very rotten fruits. He tossed the food aside, and threw the bottles into the boat before moving on.

Feet finally off of the sand, Nagito was met with a rather dense patch of trees. He wanted to continue moving forward but couldn't help but feel that he was being watched. Casting aside his nervousness he took a step forward, only to wish that he hadn't.

From the lowest branch of the nearest tree a snake was now hanging down. It's body and head were both massive for such a creature, the word "giant" being the perfect descriptive term. Nagito froze as it fell to the floor, revealing the extra five or so feet that hid in the tree branches.

And then it started chasing him.

He spun on his heels as the animal shot forward. He ran back towards the beach, peeking back to see his pursuer as he moved. When he came to the boat he rammed into the back of it, pushing it forward as fast as possible.

'The water!' was the only escape he could think of as he continued moving the boat across the small dunes of sand. Luckily enough for him the boat was made to be very light, it's metal easily sliding its way to the shore.

As soon as the boat hit the water he tried to jump in, falling on his back with his left leg hanging out. He smiled, happy that he made it, until he felt a slimy feeling take over his leg. Sitting up and peeking out over the edge, he could see the sake, it's mouth wrapped around his limb. It moved up and up his leg, stopping a few inches from his knee.

"Oh, you poor, poor thing. You don't have any teeth?" the 'bite' didn't hurt at all. He actually thought it felt more like he was wearing a wet sock. "Let go, little guy. You're gonna drown if you follow me out here. Come on, shoo. Shoo!"

He lifted up one of the oars and poked it on the nose. And again. And again. As the boat floated further out the snake loosened the hold it had on him. Eventually it slipped off after being nudged by a few waves. Nagito quickly brought in his leg, and then stood up to watch the large serpent swim back to shore.

And now he was drifting on the water again.

* * *

Nagitos eyes were currently darting back and forth between his stump and the set of oars. If he had tried to do so, rowing with only one arm would cause him to go in circles. And trying to row on the right and left sides with only one arm would leave him easily exhausted.

*Splash!* he flinched at the sound. The feeling of cold water splashing onto his torso brought his attention away from his lack of an arm, and to the water. Under his vessel he bore witness to a school of fish, the type of which he didn't recognize. It was a sight to behold, observing them as they swam together, breaching the water to jump towards the sky.

But it quickly became overwhelming. All of a sudden there were fish jumping all around him, some even landing inside the boat. One after another the fish surrendered their lives, filling the boat in a matter of minutes.

* * *

"Where is this guy..." Soda had been waiting for awhile to lock up Komaeda, but he hadn't shown up yet. He was beginning to grow suspicious of him. Could he have been planning something against the rest of them?

"Ha...hah...I'm...im here," he heard Nagito's voice coming from near the gates, along with a loud scraping sound. The Ultimate Lucky student slowly rounded the corner...dragging half of a metal boat behind him. He stopped pulling it at the midpoint between the cottages, and pulled his folded clothes and shoes out of the useless piece of metal. He slowly limped past Kazuichi and into his room, slamming the door behind him.

"What...what the hell happened to him?" the remaining half of the boat was filled with dead fish, and had smoke coming off of where it was separated from its other half, which seemed to have been burnt as well. "What has he been doing all day?"


	16. Free Time: Are You Alright?

"Rise and shine, lovebirds! It's morning," Kazuichi tapped his knuckles against Akane's door with a fast flick in his wrist. His knocking was nonstop and continuously rapid, not wanting to leave without some sort of response.

Behind the closed door, Akane was sitting up atop her mattress, wincing at the displeasure her aching joints brought. Next to her was Hajime, still asleep on his side. He was giving away clear signs of discomfort as he lay there, his body shaking as he let out occasional spurts of labored breathing. She placed her palm on his hip, flinching as she heard another knock at her door.

"Keep knocking, and I'll chop your damn hand off!" her loud threat was enough to cause Soda to Yelp, his persistent knocking immediately ceasing. Hajime was also affected, now on his back, eyes cracked open. His face was glowing, both cheeks a bright pink, as well as covered in a layer of sweat.

"O-Okay! Alright! I'm gonna go let Komaeda out now, and then I'll be with the pods if you need me," he spoke fast, surprisingly without error before his steps marked his leave. It wasn't long before silence engulfed the room again, and it wasn't long before Hinata spoke.

"It happened again?..." his voice was low, but as quiet as it was he might as well have been speaking at full volume.

"Sorry...I can leave. If you-"

"Stay. Please." in the tangled mess of sheets and blankets his left hand found her right. His hand was incredibly hot, that warmth increasing when their fingers intertwined. She turned to look at him, and saw his eyes closed again. "I heard them say that you couldn't walk last night. Are you hurt?"

"Ah. My ankle and my wrist. Wrist still hurts...but my ankle feels fine now."

"And that's from breaking down the door?"

"Mhm."

"So it's my fault then..."

"No, it's not! So you don't hate me then? For knocking you out again?"

"I've already told you how I feel about you. A simple mistake wouldn't change that."

She felt even warmer now. It was an awkward feeling to have, though. Girly. She felt girly. So she cleared her throat, as if that would do anything. She didn't have the time to feel that way anyhow. At least, that's how she felt. Besides, she'd rather know how he was feeling, what it could be that was making him shake in his sleep.

"Are you alright, Hajime?"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

Liar. It took everything she had to hold back from punching him in the face. He wasn't making a good case for himself either, answering so quickly. She bit her lip as she let herself fall backwards, her head landing on the pillow she was sharing with him.

"Even I can tell that you're full of it."

"Can you. How so?"

"You were shaking in your sleep. Breathing heavy, too."

He didn't say anything at that. Actually, he stopped thinking completely. She didn't know what was in his mind, but she had the common sense to pick up that something was going on in there.

"I think I'm going to get something to eat." he said dryly. His body even rose up slowly, like a corpse reanimating. Their hands disconnected even slower, that shared warmth quickly succumbing to an unwelcoming cold. She sat up quickly, to say something to stop him.

"Don't give me some shitty excuse!"

"Wouldn't you like to eat something?"

"That can wait, dammit!" he never imagined that she would turn down a meal so easily. He turned his head to look at her, stopping at about halfway.

"Nanami..." she tensed up as he spoke her name. She almost choked on her own breath too, pushing a lump down her throat. It hurt just to think about her, so there was at least some understanding to why she was getting to him. "This has to do with her, kind of."

He sat in silence, in case she said something. She couldn't. It was tough enough to get him to talk, and she didn't want to push it. He sighed when he realized that the floor was still his.

"I've been at odds with myself, since we woke up from the school trip. This person...me...who I am now. This talented, talented person...I don't want to be like this." she was confused now more than ever.

"Kamukura? What does that have to with-" she barely understood the whole Kamukura Izuru situation, but she kept listening, just for the sake of doing so.

"I watched her...I watched her die. As Izuru I just stood there. She was right in front of him, crying, in pain. With all of his talents, all of his abilities, he just stood by and watched. I've been trying to deny it recently but I can't change the fact that I AM him. And I hate myself for it."

So that was it. He was feeling guilt over the death of their friend, Nanami Chiaki. The more Akane thought about it the more she remembered what it looked like. Her death was a gruesome stain on the groups shared history, but she didn't expect Hinata to be hit so hard by it.

"It'll be a long time before I can say that to anyone else..."

"It's alright. I'm not gonna tell anyone."

"Thank you..."

Without objection she pulled him back into a laying position. His face was buried in the crook of her neck, her scent calming him as he breathed it in. He moved his head, pressing his ear against her skin, her strong heartbeat playing like a metronome.

"If you tell anyone about what we're doing,"

"Right, right...I figured as much." he laughed quietly, the sound bringing a smile to her face. She didn't end up giving him any solution to his inner dilemma, but she was glad she could provide some sort of comfort. "But I will say, this feels a lot better than the last time."

They both started to fall back asleep, silence filling the air again. They both settled deeper into their positions, Hajime even being so bold as to wrap an arm around her waist. Akane closed her eyes, only for them to shoot open when he rolled over, pulling her with him and onto her side. Now face to face, he chose to ask her something.

"So...why did you try so hard to get those doors open?" she looked embarrassed, holding on to her answer for a few seconds.

"I thought you were gonna get killed!"

"No faith in me, huh?"

"Ah, shut up!" they both laughed, letting the air settle once more. "I know I didn't really help you solve your problem, but as long as we're together, I'll always be there to run that red light with you."

"Ha...Thank you for that, Akane."


	17. Free Time: How We Spent the Day

"Look, I just want to eat some food, and go back to bed. Just, go and do whatever. As long as you show up tonight so someone can lock you up again." Fuyuhiko rolled his eyes at Nagito, who had interrupted his meal. He just stood there, though, like he was waiting to hear anything else. And it only made him angrier that Nagito was still hovering around him silently. He raised his left arm and index finger, wagging it slowly as he prepared his next words.

"Nothing is going to happen until the next one wakes up. Until then, we just...live, or whatever." he picked up where he left off, now chewing on a glob of rice.

"I'm sorry for bothering you, I'll be going now." he said very plainly, his body moving to leave, before he was stopped by Fuyuhiko.

"Hey, just cuz I'm acting like an asshole doesn't mean you have to leave without something to eat."

"I was about to say that!" Sonia yelled out from the kitchen, the clanging of pots and pans heard after.

"No...I'm alright. Thank you, though." he left after that, quickly too. Fuyuhiko kept his eyes on the stairs for awhile after he left, shrugging it off to bring his attention back to his meal.

"Where'd he go?" Sonia came out of the kitchen with a plate of food meant for Nagito, stopping when she saw he wasn't there.

"He said no thanks. Just throw it on Akane's plate. God knows she won't mind." Sonia stood there for a few seconds before moving to a nearby table with two more plates on it. One was meant for Hajime, a normal amount of food on the dish. The other was meant for Akane, and had what looked like enough food for six people on it. Sonia quickly headed back into the kitchen with the dirty dish, leaving him to sit again in silence.

"GOD DAMNIT! SHIT! MOTHERFUCKER!" her voice came from the kitchen again after a thud, and the sound of something shattering. Fuyuhiko choked on his food, surprised by her sudden explosive outburst. Painfully pushing the food down his throat he stands from his seat, moving to go and check on her.

He stopped in the door to the kitchen, seeing Sonia on the floor. Around her, were the scattered remains of the ceramic plate she was carrying. All that fuss, over a broken plate? He couldn't help but laugh at her.

"You shouldn't scream that loud. I thought you hurt yourself." he took a step forward, now laughing at the string of curse words she used when she fell. As he reached out to give her a hand, he lost his footing. He slipped, because of the wet ground beneath him.

"SON OF A BITCH!" he landed on his back, hard.

"Be careful," Sonia started. Fuyuhiko sat up, arching his back as he did. "I think the floor may be a little wet."

* * *

"Nah...I can't. Can I? No I can't. But maybe..." to no other reason but being bored, Kazuichi had started exploring the control room building more thoroughly. The storage room, to be specific. And hidden away, as well as possible, was a digital camera. He became rather excited when he found it, but was put off at further glance of the item. On the front lens of the camera was a red sticky note with heavy black ink scribbled on.

'I have decided to leave this decision to you. You decide whether or not to delete these photos. VIEW AT YOUR OWN RISK. -Naegi Makoto'

The note was written in all capitals at the end to further convey its seriousness. Ever so slightly, the message was having the opposite effect on him. Before the next thought could go through his head the camera was on. He was caught surprised to see the saved photographs instantly appear onto the display.

"Oh..." his arms started shaking as soon as he saw it. There was a heavy feeling washing down his body, almost locking him in place. Breaths grew rapid, his chest rising and falling the more he stared at the picture. Mindlessly, he went to the next one. It was worse than the previous. The heavy feeling shot through him again, resonating in his chest as his heart beat faster and faster.

Look away.

He kept going, feeling in some way that he was obligated to do so. The images were horrid, some worse than others, all of them having the same effect on him. They induced fear. Disgust. Sadness.

Despair.

Look away.

He couldn't. So he did the only thing he could do. He let the camera slip out of his hands. It hit his foot as it fell, landing on the ground with a clack that echoed in his eardrums. The battery had been knocked loose, the device now off once again. He shuddered, whimpering as he let his body fall to the floor. Inches from his face was the camera.

Later he would hide the camera, better than it was before. He would also decide not to tell the others. Just in case, he made sure to re-attach the note as well.

* * *

"I feel like I have to ask you this." Sonia said as she walked down the restaurant stairs, Fuyuhiko a few steps ahead. He let out a sigh, and she could just imagine that his face was contorting to show his irritation.

"Why do we have to carry this damn food, just for them." was what he said. He ignored her almost completely, his eye fixated on the giant mound of sustenance piled atop the ceramic plate he held.

"Ah," she stopped herself when she realized that he didn't say something like, 'go ahead, ask me anything'. "They didn't come out to eat, so we have to take care of them. As their friends...right?"

She found herself asking a different question than the one she intended.

"I'm not doin' any shit like that." they were walking past the pool now, and on the waters reflection she could see that his face was straight. "You're doing that. Just cuz I'm helping you carry this, doesn't mean I did anything."

"Are you helping me because we're friends? We are friends...right?"

"I'm helping you because you asked. If i did it without being asked then it'd be like that. Open up!" they stopped in front of Akane's cottage door, Fuyuhiko yelling instead of knocking. The call was answered quickly, Hajime opening the door and taking the delivery even quicker, voicing his and her thanks. The door shut, leaving him and Sonia alone again.

"We're friends." he huffed, turning to her as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "The fact that you had to ask if we were? That's fucking stupid."

"I'm glad to hear that, but I still have that question I was meaning to ask."

"Well that's just too damn bad. I'm taking the night shift in Soda's place, so I'm gonna get some sleep. Now."

He left her hanging, walking to his cottage and shutting himself inside.

* * *

It took everything he had to not dig that camera back up. There was an odd attraction to it, to the photos. Like, if he looked long enough he'd find something that would make seeing all the others worth it. Just one candid image that would make all the others insignificant.

"We're here for a reason..."

Thats all he could think of. And that camera wasn't his. He had his own reason as did everyone else. Kazuichi wouldn't hold any of those pictures against her, and he certainly wouldn't treat her any different when she woke up. They were classmates after all.

He was grateful that there was someone out there kind enough to give them all a second chance.

"It's quitting time," Fuyuhiko pulled him from his thoughts as he stepped into the room. They exchanged looks, the Yakuza looking him over pitifully. "You look like shit."

"Guess I'm just a little tired." he lied.

"Get outta' here then."

"Yeah..."

"Oh, and don't forget to lock up Komaeda before you go to sleep."


	18. Theory

It turned back into business as usual after that day of being lazy. Business as usual being that they were still being lazy, doing nothing until their next friend awoke. They were all scattered about, in groups of two, coincidentally. Hinata was currently stuck with Komaeda, who was rambling on in their one sided conversation.

"Kamukura? Kamukura!" Nagito waved his stump in his face, knowing now that he was being ignored. Hajime sat there expressionless, his eyes half opened. His head was held up by his left fist, leaning into it with his arm resting on a table. He used the white noise made by the machinery around them to drown out Nagito, but it was starting to give way to his persistence.

"What? What is it?" he lost patience, almost yelling at him as he spoke through his teeth. Nagito smiled and laughed after that, then raised his right hand up halfway. He even waved, for whatever reason.

"Are you okay? You don't look well," he inquired.

"I'm fine. It's just...boring." Hajime's monotone voice almost made him shiver. Instead, he laughed again, pressing his palm against his stomach.

"Wouldn't you say that this is anything but? I was planning on killing you, after all!"

"Shut up." he barked.

"Sorry, sorry! Don't talk about that, I remember." he didn't seem to care, fittingly. It was clear that his will to keep his prior intentions secret was not that strong. Eventually, maybe even soon, it would slip. It interested Hajime ever so slightly, thinking about how the others would react. And then the interest disappeared, once he came to the conclusion that any and every response would be negative in nature.

"You look angry," the white haired boy commented once again, much to Hinatas own disliking. His left hand uncurled, his palm sliding up his head to grasp hard at a clump of his hair. He gave Nagito the same emotionless stare, saying nothing, yet saying everything. Nagito smiled, plainly, the expression almost as blank as the look he was receiving. "Anything I can do to change that?"

"Stop talking."

"But I like talking to you!"

Talking was the wrong word to use. He might as well have been speaking to a brick wall. Maybe he just liked the sound of his own voice.

"So, who do you think will be next?"

"It doesn't matter."

He looked excited now, a wide grin forming across his face. Hinata mentally kicked himself for setting him off, and prepared to listen to him spew nonsense again. But he didn't, surprisingly. He only held his smile and giggled to himself.

"I'd like to see someone like Tsumiki first."

At that, Hajime started tuning him out again. Eventually he did stop talking, once he noticed he wasn't being listened to. A thin veil of silence was now draped over them, waiting to be broken by Nagito once again.

* * *

"Hey. Kazuichi. Hey!"

Soda flinched when Kuzuryu shouted in his ear. He stopped what he was doing, flinching again when the tool he was using was grabbed out of his hand. He looked up at Fuyuhiko with a confused and disoriented look.

"I need that..." the mechanic reached for his instrument, only to have it moved further away. Fuyuhiko eyed him sternly as he held the item hostage over his head, watching his friend mindlessly struggle to reclaim it. "Please."

"What's the matter with you?"

"I need that to tighten this last screw. It's the only one that fits."

The pink haired boy held up a small handheld radio, shaking it slowly while pointing at it with his free hand. The screw he was mentioning even fell out, leaving him wanting the tool back even more.

"You made a radio." Fuyuhiko had enough sense to see that his question wouldn't get an answer right this second. He wouldn't give up so easily though, trying to start a side conversation to ease him into speaking.

"Two." he said, now presenting the both of them. They were both finished, save for the last screw on the second one. Even though he had just completed a project, it looked like he didn't have that accomplished look in his eyes. Clearly, he was trying to work his troubles away.

Fuyuhiko let out a sigh and extended his palm, returning what he had taken. But before Soda could lay a hand on it it was pulled back. He looked up at his friend once again, who was now looking down on him with an unfamiliar look on his face.

"Talk." his voice was heavy, the tone easily conveying the severity of his demand. Him and the mechanic were now staring into eachother's eyes, the latter still resisting the request. Kazuichi opted out, standing up and walking past his friend, their shoulders bumping as he moved.

"I'll see if I have another one..."

* * *

It was indeed a strange sight to see. So far he had seemed very distant and unwilling to talk to him. But as soon as she walked into the room it was like night and day. He was smiling brightly, enlightened by her presence.

Nagito almost didn't exist while she was in the same room as him. He just sat there, watching him as he looked up at her. He was barely in her field of view, but even she was sending sideways glances his way. She was acknowledging him, but Hajime was not. At this point, he finally caught on to what was happening.

"Are the two of you together?" he blurted out, startling the two of them. It was a needless question as it was clear as day, but he wanted to hear it from them. Akane was now glaring at him intensely, forcing him into silence. Then, she told Hajime something about seeing him later before leaving as quickly as possible. And even though his back was turned to her, Nagito could still feel her heavy gaze meting into him.

"Is she gone?" he asked hesitantly, trying not to peek over his shoulder in case she wasn't gone. Hajime's face quickly became void of emotion again as he settled back into boredom.

"Yes..."

"Great! Now, we can continue our conversation! I've been thinking about something,"

"What is it this time."

"It was a fluke."

Hinata gave him a second look, wondering what he could possibly be referring to. For the first time today, he had actually piqued his curiosity. Logic dictates that whatever he's about to say will be nonsensical, but he listens anyway.

"Fluke?"

"Me! Waking up was a fluke! Don't you think? I mean, wouldn't you think so. We were all comatose, and I just happened to wake up naturally."

Komaeda hadn't let him down after all. Thinking about it now was quite interesting, in fact. Most likely, he was correct in his theory.

"You were lucky. Extremely lucky."

"So the others then? They won't be as fortunate."

"Hmm...I think we need to talk to the others about this."

"Oho, I said something useful, didn't I!? You wait here, I'll go get the others!"

Without objection Nagito sprung from his seat and ran out of the room, eager to do as he said. Hinata was left alone with his thoughts, trying to find an answer for the new problem laid out before him.


	19. Frustration

"What the hell is that supposed to mean!" an announcement of the conclusion Hinata had come to had sent Fuyuhiko into a frenzy of confusion and worry. It was actually pretty surprising to see him react like this. "What do you mean they won't wake up!?"

"Naturally. I said naturally." he looked even more dumbfounded after that, his eyebrows shooting up as high as they could go. He opened his mouth, letting out a grunt when he couldn't find his words. He bit his lip after, quickly approaching Hajime and placing his palms on his shoulders.

"That doesn't make me feel any better! Him! How did he wake up then?!" he shook his friend before he pointed at Nagito, the others following the direction to set their eyes on the white haired boy. It was a good and fair question, seeing as he was able to do exactly what everyone else was apparently unable to.

"Luck." his tone of voice was just about to send the young Yakuza over the edge. He took note of something he'd like to say to Hajime in private. He felt that he wasn't taking the matter as serious as he should be, and was about to express that.

"Luck? Luck!? That's bullshit! You expect me to just believe that he's standing right THERE, right NOW, because of luck!?" letting go of Hajime he took a step back and pointed at Nagito again. His yelling was bringing the others some concern, save for Kazuichi. He was standing there with a empty expression, his arms crossed tightly.

"I never said they were a lost cause." he spoke before Kuzuryu could shout again, wanting to deliver the hopefully calming words quickly. "I just wanted everyone to know, that Komaeda was the first and last person to wake naturally."

"You're saying it like you've reached a solid conclusion." Sonia voiced, earning Fuyuhiko's support instantly. Hinata cupped his chin with his left hand, forming his supporting argument in his mind.

"If they could all wake like Komaeda did, I would think that someone else would have by now. I also think that it would've been a domino effect, one after the other, as soon as the first one was up. Soda? Have any of them moved at all?"

"Everyone has been still as rocks."

"There."

Sonia held up a finger, wanting to deliver a counterpoint, but she couldn't find one.

"But there is still hope, isn't there Kamukura?" Nagito waved his stump at him, smiling an awkwardly wide smile.

"There better fuckin' be. Otherwise, you're telling us this just to piss me off!"

"I can start trying different things as early as tomorrow." Hinata spoke up, clapping his hands together at the last word. Everyone, save for Kazuichi again, looked at him puzzled. "I've already started thinking about different methods."

"Like what?" Akane blurted out mindlessly, too curious not to ask. She apparently spoke for them all, as everyone held their tongues. Hajime did have a clear answer, two to three, to be exact. But he didn't say anything, worried that once voiced, the 'methods' he proposed would be flagged.

"It's complicated." was what he said to hopefully avert disaster.

"It better be! Because if you half-ass this I swear to god I'll make you pay for it!"

He stormed off towards the door, letting loose a full arsenal of curses as he did. The room quickly fell silent without his angry outbursts, none of the others really having anything to say. Hinata let out a quick breath before he was compelled to to go after him, his legs moving almost on their own. Briskly he moved to the doors, and stopped as soon as he stepped outside.

Fuyuhiko was no further than a few steps away from him, pacing back and forth swiftly. He back was hunched over, and his hands were balled up and shoved deep into his pockets. He was even muttering to himself, the only words that could be heard however, were the vulgar ones. He stopped his movements for a second when he saw Hinata, shaking his head before continuing to pace.

"Just say what you're gonna say, and get out of my face!" he shouted as he kept moving, wanting him to be home sooner rather than later.

"I get why you are angry." was probably not the best thing to say, no matter how much it was true.

Before he knew it Fuyuhiko had landed a punch on Hajime's jaw. In fact, he let himself be hit. This was something that, in the moment, he felt needed to happen. If he had dodged, intercepted, or anything else his friends mood would only turn more sour.

"You're not waiting for anyone, so how could you understand!"

It was just on the line of what he was expecting him to say. Not word for word exactly, but in the same realm at least.

"I just told you that there was no possible way she would wake up on her own. So I do understand. But I also said that there was still a way." small beads of blood dripped from the corner of his mouth and rolled down as he talked. It was off putting to see him maintain composure like this, but that was something to ponder on at a later time.

"I know that...but you can't just expect me to be calm about this!"

"I'm not."

He wasn't? That only threw him off even more. Did he just let him have a free hit, too? At this point Fuyuhiko was starting to feel like 'a piece of shit', for going off like he had been. He let out a low groan, letting himself collapse to the ground. Hajime saw the visible change in him, and let out a breath of slight relief.

"If you trust me to do it, I can try to wake her tomorrow." his heart skipped a beat at the offer. He wanted to accept, yet he couldn't help being apprehensive to do so. Hinata hadn't done this, whatever he's going to do, to anyone else yet. So there was no prior reason to show that he was reliable in this field.

"What are you going to do?"

"That's a secret." he cracked a smile at Fuyuhiko's irritated reaction. "I will say that it's nothing physically harming. If that makes you feel better."

"How can you even do anything to begin with? We just learned about this now."

"Since Komaeda brought it up, my mind has been racing. It just comes naturally, I guess."

The offer was still lingering in the air, and he wanted to throw out more questions to stall for time. But that just felt too childish of a thing to do. The words yes and no repeated themselves in his head as he grit his teeth, still hesitant to provide an answer. He looked into his friends red eyes and received a small smile, relieving a bit of the pressure.

"You can...you can try your ideas on whoever. If it's her or not, I...I don't care. I think I'm gonna go back to my room. I'll see ya tomorrow...probably."

"I'll be here by noon if you change your mind."

He turned and started walking away at that. Part of him was screaming at himself for declining his offer, but he stuck with it. As he walked home, he started to think about what could have brought him to say no. There was still time to change his mind, after all. And he had all night to think it over.


	20. Anticipation

"Come on! It's not right if you don't hit me back!"

"Sorry. I think I'll just stay down here for a bit."

In his current bout of sparring with Akane, Hajime had taken a blow to the chest during a lapse in his focus. His thoughts were currently on what was to happen later in the day, when he would attempt to wake one of his comatose friends.

"Get up, we just started!" she lifted him off the ground by his shoulders, placing him back onto his feet before taking a few steps away. His head was pointing to the ground as he was wading through his thoughts, so he didn't see it when Akane charged at him again. As quickly as the last time she took him down, she swept him by the legs, and he was on the ground yet again. "Fight back, Hajime! You promised you'd be my sparring partner, right?"

He let out a flat sigh, remembering exactly when the words "I promise" had left his mouth yesterday. Looking over he shuddered inside, seeing her look at him disappointingly as she stood over him again.

"I did promise you that. Sorry, I guess I just can't get my mind off today's plans." that was all he needed to say to get her to sympathize with him. She let out her own flat sigh before extending her arm and offering her hand, lifting him off the ground again. "All right then...lets go."

"Go where?"

"I made a promise, right? Just don't complain when I pull my punches."

* * *

"Thirty four, thirty five, thirty six, thirty seven,"

"Could you stop that? Whatever that is."

Soda had been able to tolerate Komaeda's vocalized counting for a few minutes, speaking as his patience wore away. The Ultimate Lucky Student sent him a look along with a full smile, giggling as his lips came together and shut. He stopped speaking, but his counting continued, turning into a slow nodding of his head and taps on the wall he leaned against.

"What are you...what the hell is with the counting? Can you stop, making, noise!" the mechanic clapped along with his last three words as he threw them out like stones. Nagito looked him in the eyes again, falling silent as he mouthed the numbers he was counting in his head.

"I'm counting up to an hour, because by the time I'm done, Kamukura will be here!" Hajime did say that he would be in the control room by noon, and he was clearly excited for what would happen when he did. "I think I've counted twenty minutes already,"

"Well I KNOW you have, because it's twenty past eleven!" he yelled again, pointing at the clock that was hanging on one of the walls. Nagito looked up at it and laughed before he started staring at it, his eyes following the seconds as they went by.

* * *

"Hn!"

Fuyuhiko shot up from his bed in a cold sweat, his chest seemingly rising faster than it could fall. The sudden rising of his body did not help him either, as a quick jolt of pain hit his head along with a wave of dizziness. He flinched from the pain, clamping his eyes shut while he leaned over, pinching the bridge of his nose.

He leaned over, his left arm reaching down to the floor near his bed, his hand searching for the glass of water he had left there. The only thing he could think of to remedy his splitting headache was to drown it with water. And as soon as his fingers made contact with the tall glass he gripped it tightly and pulled it to his lips.

His idea was working, his pain lessening as he drank, lines of water flowing down his chin as his mouth overflowed. He emptied the glass in good time, gasping for air as he finished.

But it wasn't enough.

He swung his legs over, standing up and stumbling towards his bathroom, going for the sink. In almost a single motion he plugged the bowl and started running cold water. He jittered as it filled up, his now pounding heartbeat thumping in his ears, building his headache back up.

As soon as the sink was filled he stopped the flowing water, and plunged his head into the small pool of the substance. It felt electric almost, relaxing him, slowing his heart rate. He resurfaced with another gasp of air, his face dripping wet as his tongue lapped up the water on his upper lip. Catching his breath he leaned back over the sink and started drinking again, bringing water up with his palms.

"Hah...hah..." he turned around and went back to his bed and let himself fall on his back, eyes now to the ceiling as his fingers dug into his sheets. Slowly he could feel himself relaxing as his deep breaths slowed into a calming rhythm, and his eyes became heavy once again.

"The time!" until he remembered the deadline he had been given. He rose in a flash, scrambling on his feet to get dressed, sloppily throwing on his clothes, as he took a glance at his alarm clock. He let out a loud curse once he read the time, five minutes past noon.

"Dammit, I hope he's as punctual as I am."

* * *

"You have to calm down. Breathe."

Whomever it was that was speaking, sounded so calm, so collected. However, that voice sounded ever distant, lost in the ringing that they heard more than anything else. They could not be seen either, hazy vision still adjusting to the light overhead.

The only thing they could gain a solid grasp on was their confusion. What was this? What was happening? They started to panic, warranting that person to suggest that they breathe again as they stepped closer, leaning over them.

"Can you hear me?" they sounded louder than before, but they still couldn't be seen clearly. All they could make out were the bright red eyes, unfamiliar to them completely. "Can you move?"

They could, although it was a little tough. They felt stiff, or rather, weak. The person above asked the last question again when they didn't respond, and received an answer in the form of the light shuffling of their hips.

"You can move, that's good. So that means you can hear me too. You look confused, though. You can't see clearly, can you? Here, I'm going to sit you up."

Now that they weren't staring up into bright lights, clear vision was slowly returning to them. And their eyes went wide when they saw who it was speaking to them.

"Y-You..."

"You don't recognize me? That's odd. Komaeda didn't seem to have any problems remembering me."

"No...I...you're Hinata...Hajime. But you look different."

"Tell me, what's the last thing you remember?"

It was an odd thing to ask so quickly. They were silent, thinking about the answer impulsively.

"Before waking up...all I can remember...is things going dark. But before that, I was...I was talking to–"

Across the room, the doors flew open with a crash. They struggled to raise their arm, pointing a finger at the person they now saw standing in the doorway.

"Him." Their finger was pointing limply at Fuyuhiko, who was now standing still, staring them eye to eye. He had gotten there a few minutes too late. He had missed his deadline.

"Well, isn't this just great? I knew you could do it, Kamukura!" Nagito exclaimed through the tense silence, bringing a few angry glares his way.


	21. Koizumi

"As the first, I believe there might be something you can help me with."

"Anything at all, I'm happy to help,"

Hajime stood near Nagito, the two of them a modest distance away from the others as they gathered around Mahiru. There was an odd vibe surrounding them, Fuyuhiko and Kazuichi completely silent, the mechanic looking away from the photographer entirely.

"You remember your life before the island, don't you?"

"Oh, of course. I mean, at first it was a bit confusing. But eventually it all flooded back to me. That's part of why I agreed...y'know? To not kill any of you. All of us were working together nicely out there. Maybe nicely isn't the best way to put it. "

Hinata nudged his arm with his elbow, silencing him before he switched on his autopilot. And he was quiet, for a bit, before he made a noise that showed his curiosity in something.

"Looks like it's coming back to her now." he gestured towards Mahiru, who had a visible look of shock on her face. Hajime took note, easily spotting the sudden change in her demeanor, excusing himself before walking over towards her direction. She took notice of his nearby presence, her gaze jumping to him as he walked past her and the others, and into the storage room.

Besides her, the only other person to notice him enter the storage room was Kazuichi, who quickly fell into a panic. He sprung into action, knowing what he was going in there for, and knowing that he wouldn't find it. He stepped through the threshold of the storage room, and froze. Much to his surprise, Hinata was standing there with the camera in his hands, and odd look etched onto his face.

"This is why you've been acting so distant?"

"You've seen what's on here?"

"Mhm. Here. Take it, and hide it on you. Give it to her when you think the time is right." without objection he placed the device into Soda's hands, telling him also that this would help him regain his peace of mind. He moved past him after that, rejoining the others.

Left alone, the mechanic let out a low grumble, squeezing the camera in his hands. He wanted more than anything to just walk out there right now, and shove the thing into her arms. But he knew it wouldn't be right, to bring this up around all of the others. At least that's what he figured Hinata meant by 'when the time is right'.

He ended up snatching the beanie off of his head and wrapping the camera inside. Quickly and quietly he left the storage room, and went straight for the doors outside, his now lumpy head wear pressed to his hip by his right hand.

* * *

Hinata had spent a good amount of time explaining to Koizumi what happened after she had 'died'. She felt indifferent about it all, yes—the killings did continue after hers, but it wasn't like they were actually dead. What finally received a reaction from her though, was what came at the end of it all.

It was now known to her that for the second time, Enoshima Junko had fallen. Their de facto leader, epicenter of despair, was wiped away once again. Mahiru did not know what exactly she thought about that.

She was glad, and angry, even a bit sad. The last two emotions felt wrong, but they couldn't help being there. Even Hinata knew that she would have some sort of remorse for her, having been under her thumb for as long as she had been.

"Now we're free to live our lives."

Was his reasoning for telling her all of this, to instill in her that their futures belonged to themselves, and they were hopeful. After that, he wasted no time in saying that he wished for her to 'join' them in this new life, therefore giving her a choice in the matter. It was concerning to think what may happen if she had said no, but she quickly tossed the thought aside, mindlessly nodding her head at him in agreement.

He didn't say anything after that, sitting across from her silently, hands fiddling with a half empty teacup. He stopped moving when her look drifted up, before slowly dragging to the side, and then back down.

"My camera...where's my camera!" she instantly came to life, startling Hinata slightly. Her eyes bulged as she shouted, her arms and legs pushing herself up as she tried to slow her hitched breaths.

"C-Calm down," his iron demeanor seemed to crack at her sudden desire for her device, standing up after her, his hands raised halfway. He gulped, forcing a lump down his throat, clearing his throat after.

"I'll be okay...hah...I just need my camera!"

"I was about to give it to you!" Kazuichi's voice rang from the stairs of the restaurant as he climbed them. Hajime and Mahiru looked at him as he stood atop the last step, his chest heaving from nervous breaths. His palms firmly held her camera to his chest, which he shoved out towards the photographer as he quickly approached her. "Get this away from me! I'm sorry, Hajime, but I can't wait anymore."

She snatched her belonging from him as the two boys exchange glances, one understanding, one apologetic.

"No...no... It can't really be like this, can it?" she started viewing the pictures saved onto the camera, one after the other. She wanted to vomit, holding back as her eyes skimmed photo after photo. "It just doesn't feel real."

Hajime took a step back, saying nothing, letting the moment play out on its own.

"Stop looking over my shoulder," Mahiru pulled her camera closer to her her chest before turning to address Kazuichi.

"I wasn't. Like it matters, anyway...I've already seen all of it."

"You have? Then why didn't you delete any of it!"

Hinata flinched when she yelled at Soda, who had done the same.

"What are you talking about?! Isn't it YOUR rule to not delete photos!?"

She flinched next, surprised that he shouted at her, more surprised that he of all people remembered her rule. She shook her head, not giving him any response, turning back to look at her camera. Mindlessly and with great passionate intent she began erasing the pictures. Knowing her camera like the back of her hand, she had gotten rid of a fourth of the pictures in a few short moments.

Neither of the boys said anything as she did so. No objections nor affirmations. All of them remained silent, the only sounds that were loud enough to hear were the ones she made operating her machine.

'At least she wasn't as much trouble as Nagito.' Hinata thought as he laid down his head on the table. He had planned on waking another of their friends tomorrow, so he was glad Mahiru didn't cause him much trouble. Hopefully, things would stay this simple. However, when he looked at those who were still to come, he couldn't help but imagine things becoming more complicated.


	22. On to the Next

"How did you do it?" Nagito asked Hajime as he leaned over the table, prompting the other three boys to groan. He had asked the same question over and over already, apparently not wanting to go without an answer.

"Shut up!" next to him, Fuyuhiko placed his hand on his face, pushing the white haired student roughly back into his seat.

"They look as unreliable as ever..." Mahiru scoffed as she observed the boys interactions from across the room. Sonia and Akane took a look at them next, laughing when they saw Nagito's chair completely collapse under him.

"They're not so bad," Sonia argued for them, earning a doubting glance from the photographer.

"How did you manage to do that?" they heard Kazuichi ask as he leaned over, examining the now disassembled piece of furniture. The boy in question shrugged as he raised his arms, and jumped back when the table they were sharing collapsed as well.

"Does that look 'reliable' to you?" the redhead pointed at them, letting her brow go up as high as it could.

"They've been doing their best..." Sonia tried again to reassure, a bit concerned when she took a second glance at the scene unfolding across the room.

"Hold on, don't start without me!" Nagito shouted as the other boys stood up and began to exit. The girls watched as they left, leaving Nagito alone, scrambling to clean the mess made by his bad luck.

* * *

After a successful first attempt, Hinata was eager to continue in welcoming the others into consciousness. Up next, by the will of a certain yakuza, was Pekoyama Peko, the Ultimate Swordswoman.

"Don't you think this is happening too soon?"

"I think that as long as there's no one here with murderous intent, then we should be fine."

Fuyuhiko was questioning Hajime's decision to keep things going so quickly, when Kazuichi slammed his opinion on the conversations table. The mechanic had the eyes of them both glued to him at that moment, Kuzuryu clicking his tongue when Hinata let a light laugh escape past his lips.

"Did you just laugh?" the baby faced young man shoved a finger in the face of the accused.

"He's pretty spot on, though." was his justification. "I probably would have worded it a little differently, but yeah."

"I need a fresh face to talk to. Anyone would be better than you two and the one armed preacher. Let's get this show on the road."

* * *

"Everyone is here?" his body snapped quickly during his turnaround, the ahoge atop his head twitching as it fought against the whipping air. He didn't even see if anyone was opening their mouth to speak, his eyes quickly scanning over them and taking role, before his body swiveled to view the task at hand.

Compared to the previous instance, this felt ever more gratifying. It was no test, no guess, it was fact, he could wake the comatose in a way only he could. But part of him didn't care at all.

The ability wasn't new anymore, it was his, and it had already been done. There was no curiosity, no pondering whether success was obtainable. There was no further interest in the matter.

He hadn't even done it twice yet, and it already seemed as trivial as breathing.

"There."

But he could take solace knowing it was done.

Her eyes were open, widening and then closing partly, overhead lights too bright to stare at. A quick need to rise came to mind before anything else, her body shooting up before stopping a quarter way up as weakness overcame her.

"Here," a warm hand slid under her back before lifting her up, leaving her in a sitting position. Her vision flashed as her eyes fluttered open and closed, tears forming to wash away the dryness.

"Let me guess, she can't move her damn legs."

A familiar voice was followed be hastened footsteps, before he came into view.

"My master, is that you?"

"Don't call me that, dammit.

"I can leave her in your care, then?" Hajime asked Fuyuhiko as the others slowly began approaching, voicing their welcomes as they did so. Fuyuhiko only nodded, and Hajime asked no further questions, taking a step back before turning to walk away. But before he could get too far, Kazuichi's body appeared before him, narrowly avoiding collision.

"You're not sticking around this time?" he stopped to asked.

"I figured I'd give her and Fuyuhiko their space."

"Alright, cool! C'mon, I got something to show you."

Hinata didn't choose to object or ask why, following him as he walked outside. The mechanic spontaneously shouted "Meet me at the airport!" before running to the facility, leaving him standing alone, curious.

"What's going on out here?" Koizumi's voice came from behind him as he was about to take his first step. From out of the building came the redhead along with the other girls, Komaeda also slinking out behind them silently. Hinata gave them each a quick passing glance, knowing very well what must have transpired inside.

"The little man told us all to get lost." Akane explained, briefly and eloquently.

"So, where were the two of you running off to?" Sonia spoke next.

"Come with me and find out, I guess."

* * *

The airport here in reality was far smaller than the one portrayed in the simulation. Other than the fact that it was in the same place, there were no other similarities. In fact, this was more like a small private airfield than an airport. The area was littered with dingy looking bi and seaplanes, some more decrepit than others, a few even looking brand new.

"Isn't this place amazing?!" Soda surprised the group, springing out from behind an oil drum as he conveyed his feelings for this mechanical paradise.

"Someone's feeling a lot better," Sonia giggled.

"I'm faking blissful ignorance, but that's not the point!" he turned and ran, quickly disappearing behind some scattered planes, towards the rear of the field. The others quietly voiced doubts and concerns, before following him.

"This is exciting! I'm sure the Ultimate Mechanic has prepared something wonderful for us!" Nagito voiced his assumption, and then ran off ahead of the others, his empty sleeve flapping wildly in the wind.

In the back of the airfield, Kazuichi and Nagito were waiting, the latter standing atop what was presumably a large machine, with a larger blue tarp draped over it. Rather than saying anything, he acted, returning to the ground to grasp the cover by a corner and yanking it off in one pull.

"A boat?"

"It's a barge!"


	23. Pekoyama

"Never ask me about that again. It didn't work, end of story."

"Forgive me. So...what are we supposed to do?"

"Huh?"

"What are we supposed to-"

Peko was cut off by Fuyuhiko slamming his foot against the pod she was leaning back against. She flinched at the crash, eyes widened at him as she fought to maintain her stoic composure instead of slinking back in fear and surprise.

"Fuck! Please tell me you did not just fucking say that."

"Say wha-"

"Don't act stupid with me! You were going to say, 'What are we supposed to do'."

"Yes."

"For who?" he hissed his words harshly, confusing her greatly. Was this just a trick question? She continued staring at him silently, watching his facial expression contort further into anger and frustration. "I said...for who."

"What do you mea-"

"That is what I mean! You're smart, aren't you! So tell me."

"Eno-"

"Godammit!" he kicked the pod again out of anger, once, twice, three times. Things had just escalated to a higher level of confusion for her, and a higher level of frustration for him. Fuyuhiko slowly grew silent, and started staring at her, cupping his chin in his hand as his right foot started rapidly tapping the ground. "I need you to get what I'm about to say through your head."

"We are DONE with Enoshima Junko. You get me? DONE."

The order was enough to finally draw out some emotion from her, a shocked look now displaying on her face. She was speechless, making her opinion on the matter clear to Fuyuhiko, who now has a shocked look upon his face as well.

He didn't know what exactly to do at this moment, a scenario like this the last thing he could imagine would transpire. The first thing he thought to do was to call Hinata back from wherever he had gone, but that thought also came with the fear of what he would do. Likely, presumably rather, she would be detained and forcefully locked away while he attempted 'reconditioning' her in whatever way he saw fit. The second thing he thought to do was to 'slap the shit out of her' in hopes of knocking her to her senses, but that was obviously counterintuitive.

"What's with the the look?" he growled, receiving no immediate answer save for the still shocked look on which he was speaking of. She shifted slightly in place, knees wobbly and ready to give way to the need to fold. She was still holding onto her reply, and turned distaught when she noticed the glance of disappointment pass over her. "Say something..."

He was slowly losing his will to continue. Seeing that now saddened face of hers only made this worse. The two of them continued looking at each other in a sullen silence, waiting for the other to speak. After a few seconds, Pekoyama let out a light whimper as her legs gave out under her, leaving her on the ground with her back against the pod she was holding herself up with.

"I can't believe what's happening..." she finally said.

A light had switched on in Kuzuryu's brain, his fingers snapping loudly as the realization. He cursed himself for having passed over the thought, that she had remembered what transpired in the killing game they participated in.

'Never ask me about that again. It didn't work, end of story.'

"Wait!-" he spoke up. "Do you remember the trial, and everything else?"

She nodded her head as soon as he stopped speaking. In his mind he was smiling wider than humanly possible, finding some piece information he could finally work with positively.

"I apologize..." she spoke softly, almost under her breath. Her head started drifting downward, wanting to avoid his gaze. Fuyuhiko took a few quick steps so he could kneel down next to her.

"We can talk apologies later. First, lest talk about the obvious. That...killing game. It wasn't real."

"R-Right..."

That was a shaker start than he would've liked, but he had to start from somewhere.

* * *

"A barge."

"Yes!"

Kazuichi was massively excited about having found the sea vessel, as well as everything else in the airfield. In one place he had found a boat and a hefty amount of planes he would probably scrap for parts. He hadn't partook in much tinkering lately, so Hajime thought it'd be good for him to get back on the horse.

"You plan on using that to move between the islands? Isnt it a bit large?" Nevermind questioned the practical use of the thing, it's large size for the most part.

"It's perfect!" was the only argument Soda believed he needed to present. "It's the best I could be asked for, we can bring back as much stuff as we want, no limits or round-trips!".

The simple explanation was all Hinata needed to come to an agreement with the pink haired boy. But there were still things that needed to be figured out before the barge could be used. Just two actually.

"How do we get it into the water?" an easy question, one he probably didn't need to ask even.

"Well its here, and on a trailer, and there's a marina on this island. The one those future foundation guys used for their ship." that's exactly what Hinata was thinking, almost word for word.

"And how will we move the barge from here?" a question with a more situational answer, even if he could think of something himself.

"Ah, I just figured I'd make something that could tow it there." not much thought put into that answer, but at least it was something. "Best case scenario, we'll be in the water by this afternoon! Worst case, um...the barge sinks, I guess. So, on that note...whose gonna stay and help me out?"

"These two will, isn't that right? Mahiru stepped forward and volunteered Hajime and Nagito, pushing them both towards Kazuichi. Hinata made a thinking face, while Komaeda looked completely willing to help with the legwork, his smile the most obvious tell.

"Nah, I think I'll stay too." Akane shook her head and volunteered her own services, sliding over to stand near Hajime, who still looked to be in his thoughts.

"Well...I was thinking about going to check on Pekoyama. But I suppose I'll stay as well." Soda clapped once loudly when Sonia decided to stay as well. The masses then moved their eyes to Koizumi, pressuring smiles on their faces while they stared her down. The photographer let out a deflating sigh, and let her shoulders slump down before her posture straightened out.

"Alright. Like I'd be the only to leave anyway."

* * *

"Forgive me." she said again after seeing his face contort and twitch irritably. From behind his stiff lips came a heavy grunt.

"Would you please stop saying that."

"As you wish,"

"That too! And if you say 'yes master', then you're really gonna make me mad!" Fuyuhiko looked down on her with a tired expression, before finally offering his hand to her. She took it hesitantly, and let out a huff when his other hand came down and helped lift her onto her feet. Off the ground once again, she was leaning against her pod, now watching him move to another corner of the room, returning with a folded wheelchair. She narrowed her eyes at the seat as he unfolded it and dusted it off.

"I don't need to-" Peko tried to object the piece of equipment, her right foot moving forward only for her knee to buckle. On instinct her hands shot forward and latched themselves onto the armrests of the chair, pushing it against Fuyuhiko as he stood behind it. She glued her eyes to the floor out of shame as her left foot moved next, her legs now parallel whilst they rattled intensely.

"Just sit in the chair, Peko. Please." he leaned down, locking the wheels in place before moving to side and laying a hand on her arm. He gently pulled at her limb, slowly spinning her around so that her rear was in front of the chair, her own body doing the rest as her legs gave way and she fell into the seat. "It didn't take Koizumi that long to stand on her own feet, so don't worry about it."

She almost flinched when the chairs wheels unlocked and she was spun around. Her palms gripped the ends of the armrests tightly as he wheeled her towards the exit doors, stopping to lean over and shove the door open before swiftly pushing her through.

The sunlight overhead was almost blinding, her vision flashing as the outside came into view. Her eyes closed as her head drifted down, slowly opening again when she knew it was safe. She stared at her lap as Fuyuhiko pushed the chair forward, the dirt crackling under the rubber wheels as they went along. Pekoyamas eyes watered while her vision slowly started fading back in, the sight before them leaving the swordswoman at a loss for words.

The Mirai Hotel was a small ways away, but the look of it caught her attention immediately.

"Where are we," she let out.

"Jabberwock Island." he answered, confirming what she thought couldn't be true. "It's almost the exact same as the setting of the killing game, with only a few minor visual differences. Now can we get back to what we were talking about?"

"I believe you, you know," the brakes on his train of thought slammed down when her response plopped down onto his tracks. The wheelchair suddenly came to a stop as well, Peko's torso bobbing forward and back in her seat. "From the moment you said you disowned her cause, I believed you. I almost couldn't believe it."

"Enoshima?" she nodded her head lightly, making Kuzuryu scrunch his face in confusion.

"I'm proud of you..."

* * *

"It's working! It's working!" Kazuichi honked the horn of a derelict looking truck as its engine roared to life after a simple turn of the ignition key. The mechanic had been spending the past few minutes manically disassembling the trucks original engine and replacing it with one of his own design. "I'm putting it in gear!"

As soon as he said so, his palm moved the stick shift, and the vehicle exploded out of its parking space, moving full steam ahead into a stationary sea plane a few meters away. The others cringed before running after the monster machine as it continued moving, pushing the plane along with it with ease. The two continued to plow ahead, not stopping until they collided with the perimeter fence. The group ran up to the truck, stopping at the door as it flung open, Soda rolling out with a hand slapped over his mouth, stomach dipping in and out as he let out muffled gags.

"Good job," Hajime patted him on his shoulder as he stepped over him, reaching over the trucks steering wheel to grab the key and shut off the engine.

"*Hrmmphhh*...T-Thaan-*HURP*...thanks..." Soda wretched through his words, worried that he'd succumb to the reflex if he spoke more, liquid bile already reaching the back of his throat. With his left hand he pinched his nose shut tight so he could stomach pushing the vomit back down to his stomach. "Dammed motion sickness..."

"Motion sickness?" Sonia said, spotting a clear conflict of interest. "You plan to step foot on a sea vessel, with motion sickness?"

His eyes sparked like metal under a blowtorch, his jaw slamming down to he could praise the heavens for the princesses concern, before lurching forward. Like he had been squeezed with a vice, Kazuichi let loose a large amount of spit up, his eyelids clamping shut as the fowl taste washed across his tongue.

"Hi-Hinata!" the person of the same name now held his head to the sky, his hand hiding his eyes as he pinched the bridge of his nose. His chest was covered in the brown slop, now sliding down and changing the color of his white shirt, and splashing onto his shoes, even sliding into them to dampen his socks.

"It's...hot..." Hajime stammered out as he inwardly cringed, the heat of the bile as noticeable as a heavy blanket. "It got in my shoes..."

"It wasn't me, how lucky..." Nagito held back a chuckle and mumbled under his breath.

"What a waste of food..." Akane almost cried, noticing hints of the gangs earlier meal in the throw-up.

"Not my usual subject, but this'll look good," Mahiru said behind a click and a camera flash after she moved to Hinatas frontside.

"Poor Hinata..." Sonia felt sorry for him, a worried look on her face growing as she saw him twitch a few times as he stood there.

"Please, forgive me..." Soda pleaded, his left hand raised towards Hinata as his right covered his mouth.

"If you try to take that shirt off, it'll probably get in your hair!" Komaeda couldn't hold back his laughter anymore, bursting as he pointed out a further nuisance in the predicament. Hajime twitched again, reacting to the plopping sound that was made by his shirt dripping off the last of Kazuichi's stomach contents. "What a stroke of bad luck! I didn't think you had that, not at all!"

Hajime reacted to nothing that any of them said, slowly kicking of his filled shoes, scraping his socks against the asphalt to peel them off. He then untied his tie, then carefully pulling his arms into his shirt so he could gently and precisely raise it over his head. With a defeated way of moving, he fell back onto his bottom, arms raised forward at an angle with his torso drooping forward as well.

"Couldn't you have...avoided that?" Kazuichi had the nerve to ask, Hajime slowly nodding is head to say yes. "Then why didn't you..."

"Akane was right behind me..."

"I was? I was!" she gained a scowl on her face, turning red after her eyes darted to Soda, who returned her look with fear. "Hajime, you-"

"He gave his body to shield the one he loves!" Sonias eyes sparked as she shouted her statement, yelling something about japanese soap operas after.

"Gave his body?! It's not like he's gonna die!" Soda challenged the comparison, looking at Hinata to try and gauge his opinion.

"I think I'm dying..."

"No you're not!" Kazuichi shouted at his human target.

"Wait, did you say he loves-"

"YOU'RE DEAD!" Owari's sudden call to action interrupted Koizumi's question, leaving the redhead confused as she and the rest of the group watched as the gymnast chased Kazuichi across the lot, the pink haired one still covering his mouth as he ran.

"It seems your luck truly can rival mine, Hajime!" Nagito earned a glare for the shot he took.

* * *

"What?"

"I'm proud to see how much you've matured."

"I don't follow. You're not..."

"My loyalty is to you and the Kuzuryu Clan. Not her. Involvement in her following couldn't change that."

He could find some comfort in that. But he had to know if her loyalty could be backed up by her own opinion.

"So you could abandon despair? Just like that"

"Yes, I can. You don't have to worry about me."

All of Fuyuhiko's nervousness had just slapped him insultingly. It was all for naught, the anger, frustratuon, and shouting he had gone through today. He felt like an idiot, but at least he was a happy idiot.

"If that's how you feel, then why were you acting so confused," Fuyuhiko pointed out.

"You surprised me. Can I assume the same of everyone else?"

"Yeah, everyone's right in the head now. At least those of us who're awake now. We have to play it by ear when we wake someone up, though. That's why i...was so harsh earlier. Sorry 'bout that..."

"Please, all that shouting just showed that you care."

"That I care, huh?" he smiled, his face warming lightly as a blush started creeping over his cheeks. "Here, let me help you up." he moved by her side, offering his arm to her. Bringing her to her feet, he hooked his arm around hers, their sides touching as she leaned against him for support, her legs still weak. They started walking together slowly, both of them agreeing to go and find the others.

'I'm glad I have you back, Peko...just...wait for me to muster up some guts, and I'll tell you. I'll tell you how I feel.'

Paranoia ended up being the only roadblock he had faced today. Other than a asleep pair of legs, Pekoyama was fine, in both mind and body. It was honestly almost enough to make him jump for joy. He had his childhood companion back, and there wasn't anything else he would rather have.

 **Authors Note:**

 **Yooo~long time, no chapters from me. Sorry about that by the way. I guess I just got a bit lost in my off time. From here I won't be taking any more unmentioned brakes, and will try to update as frequently as possible. Thanks for reading~**


	24. Work and Lucky Intuition

The ears of the yakuza and swordswoman twitched when the booming echo of an explosion reached them. Fuyuhiko stopped moving forward, Peko doing the same out of necessity. He let his eyes stare down the road, and cringed when a plume of smoke was seen floating towards the sky, leaving a black trail behind it. The sight worried him slightly, and annoyed him even more. The image of Komaeda committing an act of arson for whatever reason came to mind, and that's what he would think happened until he knew what went down.

"I think we can assume that's where everyone went, yeah?" he asked her to drum up some conversation. He kept his head straight as he awaited an answer, his eyes glancing at her sideways.

"Most likely, yes." she gave a dry, thoughtless response,.earning a sigh from Fuyuhiko.

"How are your legs feeling?" he didn't want their talk to fall flat, so he took the initiative to ask another question.

"I don't think it will be too long until I can walk on my own." at that, he clicked his tongue, catching the meaning behind her words. He looked at her and tightened the link between their arms, and gave her a light smirk.

"Don't be stupid. I'll be here to help you as long as you need me to."

"R-Right. Thank you."

* * *

"Please believe me when I say that that was an accident." after being dragged back by Akane, with a now bloodied nose, Kazuichi bowed before Hajime. He looked at his pink haired friend plainly, finally standing back up after a few seconds to observe the fire burning before the truck in front of them.

"That plane you hit is on fire," Mahiru piped up behind them, causing Soda to flinch and scramble for the truck. Before he could grab the keys from the ground he was jerked back by Hinata, who had grabbed the back of his jumpsuit with both of his hands.

After telling the blundering mechanic to stay put, Hajime gestured to Akane, the two of them now standing side by side at the trucks tailgate. Together, they started pulling the truck away from the fire with ease, making the vehicle look almost as light as paper. They stopped once they had pulled the truck a safe enough distance away, and were met with applause from everyone else but Nagito, who couldn't join in on that luxury.

"Fires gettin' bigger." Akane said as the aviation machine was now engulfed in flames. Everyone gathered around to watch the fire and all flinched at the same time when the plane, for seemingly no reason, exploded. Along with the boom came the rising of the flames, and a thin pillar of black smoke.

"Some clean clothes would be nice right now." Hajime teased Kazuichi as he peeked over his bare shoulder, arms clutching eachother tight across his chest. He even had the gall to gesture to his pile of vomit soaked clothes that were now fermenting in the sunlight. He even took it a step forward, looking down at his bare feet and wiggling his toes before saying "The ground is pretty hot, too."

"What do you want me to do, huh? Snap my fingers and wish for your stuff to be clean?"

"It would be a start."

"How would that be a start!?" Soda yelled at Hinatas smiling face, stamping his foot down to protest his being toyed with. His tormentor let out an audible chuckle, waving his hands in front of him after he turned to face the mechanic.

"It's fine, it's fine. I'm just messing with you." Soda was given a tiny bit of relief when he heard that, before he saw the look on Hinatas face turn into a flat, judgemental stare. "But if it happens again, there will be hell to pay."

Kazuichi only shook his head, not wanting to know exactly what he meant by 'hell'. With threats made and apologies expressed, the group collected themselves and went back to the task at hand: getting the barge into the water.

* * *

"Hmmm...I wonder..." the commotion following Kazuichi's blunders was engrossing enough that Nagito could simply walk away and not be noticed by anyone. Even after saying 'I'm going back to my room to change my bandages', he was not paid any mind. "Soda should be able to make a mechanical arm, right?".

"But then again, with luck like mine, maybe living with one arm won't be so bad."

"Hey, you! If I find out you had anything to do with that explosion, I'll have your head on a platter!" a few feet down the road, Komaeda spotted Kuzuryu and Pekoyama, and took the yakuza's words in stride. He said nothing in response only smiling as both parties continued walking, and dropped the expression as soon as they both were to his back. He let out a dry huff, and quickened his pace.

"Acceptance...how long until I'm not the odd man out anymore? Such a shining stepping stone I have been given. But I suppose it's to be expected. Yeah...I should expect it.." glancing at his stump reminded him of his history with his group of companions, his behavior and actions reminding him why he was treated the way he was. An exhale came from his nose, his phantom limb clenching it's fist and bringing a light pain to what was left of his arm.

For some reason he imagined an artificial limb would alieviate him of the pain, and cringed when he recalled how the pain was once something he could say gave him joy. A pain that would nourish his hope with each passing ache, he called it. A sickening view, even he thought that it was. The fact that he lived in despairs name nor too long ago was even more so.

A wave of vibrations shot up his arm when the phantom pain faded away, drawing his eyes to his empty jacket sleeve as he walked. The feeling was painful, yes, but when it was there it was almost like he had the rest of his arm again.

* * *

Things were moving along pretty quickly with the barge, as Hinata was already in the process of towing the vessel with Soda's truck. The barge was incredibly heavy, but the truck was able to pull it without much resistance. As the truck rolled out of the airfield gates and onto the road, Hajime shifted in his seat, his warm torso slowly peeling off of the leather interior when he did. It was a useless effort, though, his body sticking back to the seat once he settled.

"Do you want my shirt?" his head shot to his right, eyes bulging wide, making a blush wash over Owari's cheeks as she drifted her eyes down and away from his. Her mouth opened while she shifted in her seat, a breath coming from her throat when she stopped what she was going to say, trying to order her words appropriately. "I mean, I have this on, so..."

She was referring to her training bra, her left hand pulling it partways out of her shirt. His eyes looked down at the fabric, then back at her, the same wide eyed blank expression on his face. They both looked away at the same time, their eyes now fixed on the road ahead. Silence wasn't allowed, the purr of the engine pouring in through the open windows, the voices of the others filling the air as they sat upon the barge as it was being towed.

"I'll be fine without a shirt for now. Besides...it's pretty windy...you could get sick." and he was the one without a shirt or shoes. He leaned forward a bit, pulling his skin from the seat again before leaning back into it. Out of the corner of his vision he saw her move, shortly before feeling her sit down right next to him. His head turned slightly, to see her reach forward and turn the trucks air conditioning knob up a few notches, before she inched just a little closer to him. Their legs and arms were touching, her body head creeping onto his skin as the heat coming from vents in front of him caused his eyes to slightly narrow.

"You're the one who's gonna get sick first." she said. "If ya do, then we won't be able to spar!"

Her clenched fist playfully came down on his thigh. He laughed a bit, and let a calming exhale pass his lips.

"Yo!" Just ahead, Hajime could see Fuyuhiko and Peko on the side of the road, the boy flagging him down with a wave of his free arm. The truck sped up slightly, before stopping so that the two hitchhikers were parallel to the drivers window. "What the heck is this?"

He gestured to the truck as well as the huge barge. On the water vessel, Soda's head peaked out, having heard the question. He waved out his greeting to Kuzuryu before giving his answer.

"We're gonna use this barge to check out the other islands, maybe bring back some stuff!" being a few feet off the ground made him feel he needed to yell for some reason, Fuyuhiko giving him the side eye before looking to Hajime with a raised brow.

"And you are shirtless because?..."

"He threw up on me." Hinata gestured behind him, Fuyuhiko glancing at Kazuichi again to see him tugging at his collar. His nose twitched, subconsciously searching for an unpleasant smell, only finding the salt infused ocean breeze. "Are you two joining us? We're going to the marina right now. The one the Future Foundations ship was docked at."

Peko only looked straight ahead, leaving the choice up to Fuyuhiko. He shrugged his shoulders, saying nothing while he lead Peko around to the trucks passenger side, opening the door and helping her into the row. Hajime and Akane inched more to the drivers door to make room, all of them shoulder to shoulder as Fuyuhiko slammed his door shut, a heavy breath heard from him afterwards.

"All right!" behind them outside, Kazuichi pounded on the metal of the barge as he beckoned for the truck to set off once more. "Let's get going!"

* * *

A cold breeze made by his door shutting behind him made Nagitos body quiver, his teeth clattering once or twice as he settled back into his warmth. Taking steps forward he let his jacket slide off so he could throw it towards his bed. Entering the bathroom he stopped at the mirror, lifting up his arm to view the worn bandages wrapped around the end of his stump. Picking the end of the bandage he pulled it off in one motion, afterwards leaning over to grab the roll of medical tape he kept under the sink.

The bandages that were touching the end of his stump were more worn than the others, the black scab having rubbed off on it during the past few days. He debated to stop wrapping it, slightly, but ended up doing so anyway. He most likely did so just to stay in the habit of it. He walked out of the restroom at that, grabbing his jacket and sliding it back on, leaving the zipper undone. As he stepped out with the intent to rejoin the others, a sudden impulse popped into his head.

Some feeling, one that felt closer to intuition than anything else, had brought the idea to go to the control room to his mind. He thought about it for less than a second, before deciding to go to the building where the rest of the group still slept. After all, for such an idea to come so suddenly to mind...

It could only be a lucky occurrence, right?


	25. Lucky Chance!

The closer Komaeda came to the control rooms building, the more the islands breeze turned into a constant wind. It was the same with the air, the atmosphere growing colder with each step of his feet, the direction of the wind changing from just the west to all directions. It was making him excitable, to feel changes outside that could mark reinforcements of his sudden intuition to come to this place.

As he reached the main doors, the sounds of distant voices reached him along with noises of an engine pulling tires, and louder sounds made by clanging metal. Komaeda stopped and whipped his head around in both directions, before quickly ducking inside, lest he be spotted. The doors now behind him he shuddered, the still air inside much colder than the whipping wind outside. Focusing, he took a witheld step, listening for any notable changes in the room as he did. After a quick moment of standing still he broke into a slow pace, surveying the room around him. The reason for his sudden spurt of intuition was not making itself obvious, so he came to his own assumption in place of missing knowledge.

"Is someone there?" his voice floated out lightly, carrying little weight, and probably reaching nobody in the process. He wasn't responded to, but he still thought that this must be it: someone in this room was now awake. He didn't speak again, but continued moving, choosing now to walk towards one of the nearest pods.

Once he came to the capsule he leaned over it, and met with the sleeping visage of Nidai. He said nothing, and moved on to the next one. Hanamura was still. Tanaka was as well. And so was The nameless imposter. He quickened his pace to see the others, Mioda, Saionji, and Tsumiki. He stopped in place after passing over the musician and traditional dancer, thinking he he finally narrowed things down.

"Tsumiki?" he called out, looking across to her capsule a few feet away. Taking a slow step forward he wheezed out a heavy, shuddering breath which conveyed his eagerness to confirm his hunch. The air crackled with static anticipation as moved towards her with baited breath, expecting to hear some signs of life coming from her way. The closer he came to her the more he was weighed down by the heavy silence, his strong belief in his luck beginning to waver.

Until he saw her face. Beneath Komaeda, Tsumiki was fidgeting around as she lie there with her eyes slightly opened, her warm breath fogging up the transparent screen between them. He let his index finger tap on the barrier, asking for her attention as he spoke her name in time with his taps.

She didn't even appear to be aware of his presence, her empty gaze looking right through him. All she seemed to be doing was shifting in place, as a sleeping person would do if you were to gently shake them by the shoulders. And then, her eyes shut again, as her body slowly settled back into rest.

"Hm?" he was taken aback by her return to stillness, a strong look on confusion now ironed onto his face. At first he called it as a fake out, his face hovering above hers so that he could stare her down through the heavy breaths that continued flowing from her lungs and fogging the screen between them. "I don't get it, I must be missing something..."

* * *

"Three, two, one...NOW!" at the final count Fuyuhiko let his foot rise away from the brake pedal, the truck now backing into the breaking waves of the shoreline. As the trailer hit the water with the barge atop it, Hinata and Owari were on standby at both sides, awaiting to help push the barge further into the water. As strenuous as their efforts had to be, this was the only possible way to get the barge on the water, the marina lacking any sort of machinery to lower the vessel into the water. Soda had first proposed they simply push the barge off the dock and be done, but still, there would be no way to remove it from the trailer first.

Luckily for everone, the barge was wider horizontally than vertically, letting it slide off of the flatbed once it was submerged enough. As steel met seafoam, Hinata and Owari went into action, the two of them slowly striding over to each end to nudge the vessel forwards. As they did the sound of an engine kicked up, joined by very loud convulsions as Soda manned the helm, fighting his motion sickness while he rocked gently on the waves.

"We're running out of ground here!" Akane yelled, spitting and coughing after a wave rose and smacked her in the face.

"Go ahead and...l-let go! I think we're...alright! I'm bringing it around to dock!" Soda happily exclaimed through labored breaths as he battled against his gag reflex. As he said so, the barge began to move forward at a steady pace, breaking through the waves to float on steadier waters ahead.

* * *

"Togami...Nidai...Tanaka...Hanamura...Mioda...Saionji, and...Tsumiki?" Komaeda found himself looking over everyone again, ending on Tsumiki as he did before. He sighed, biting his lip, the nurse was still unmoving, laying as if she were a corpse. "Is this not why I'm here?"

Sighing again, he grabbed at his empty sleeve and pulled it to his stomach, his phantom limb creating sharp pains with every bend of a finger. Komaeda stood in place, thinking things out as he waited for the pain to subside.

He was becoming frustrated, even if only slightly. More often than not, his strokes of luck were clear and obvious, so the idea that the reason for his "lucky intuition" was alluding him left him pretty irritated.

"I guess I'll look around." he said to himself under his breath, taking one last pass over Tsumiki before walking about the room. He began inspecting everything around him, scrounging up nothing save for junk and machinery, none of it screaming 'this is why I am here'.

"What are you doing." he froze, his lose grip on a printed document faltering, the stapled papers floating down to land on his shoes. Forcing a lump down his throat he shakily turned his head to the right, peeking over his shoulder to greet the person who had caught him sneaking about. He was a little relieved, though, to see that particular pair of red eyes.

"Kamukura! I mean, H-Hinata! Sorry about that." Hinatas eyes quickly darted around the room before falling onto his once again. Hinata was soaking wet, beads of water still clinging to the strands of his hair, his pants squishing with every small movement he made. "Ah! I'm not doing anything you wouldn't condone, of course! I mean...would you believe me if I told you I was here for...intuitive reasons?"

"What would intuition have to do with you turning the place upside down?" Hinata questioned him, slowly circling the pods as he approached.

"Um...well...I." he stammered, not wanting to tell him, yet knowing that to lie would get him back on Hinatas bad side. "I'm not really...looking for anything in particular. When I got here, I thought one of them was going to wake up-"

"Who?"

"Tsumiki! Y-Yeah, Tsumiki...her eyes were open, she was tossing and turning...then she just stopped." after the quick rundown Komaeda watched Hinata approach Tsumiki, thoroughly examining her before looking back to him.

"Okay, listen," Hinata started, stopping to walk over and grab a plastic bucket hanging from a hook on a nearby wall. "I'm going to be gone for a bit, to go scrape my clothes off of the airfield. I'll come back once I'm cleaned up. Until then...you watch her like a hawk. Alright?"

"Alright! I mean, yes. I can do that." Hinata was a bit surprised at his enthusiasm, but wasn't willing to take the extra minutes to question him about it. He nodded to Komaeda, and then turned to walk away, a brisk pace carrying him away. Once Hinata reached the doors, he turned back before taking his exit.

"Nagito. I can trust you with this?"

The Ultimate Lucky Student froze, his beating heart going into double time. In his head, Hinatas voice rang with the same question over and over. To be considered for such an honor...how exhilarating! His heart started beating even faster, excitement atop of excitement winding him up, while not trying to tell him just how happy he truly was in this moment. He couldn't help but let a bubbly laugh escape him, his head nodding up and down as if it were on a spring.

"Yes you can! You can trust me!" Hinata didn't appear to care about his odd enthusiasm, only returning his wide smile with a curve of his lips. They both waved eachother off, an intense burning in his chest igniting once Hinata had finally left. He raised his now clenched fist, and slammed it onto his chest. All he had to do now, was hope that nothing would go wrong. He had to make absolutely sure that he didn't mess this up for himself.

"I guess I really am here because of my luck. I just hope I can earn your trust, all of you."


End file.
